Manslaughter arrest made in connection with fatal Emiliano Sala crash

19 Jun, 2019 17:57 / Updated 5 years ago

A man has been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter related to the January plane crash which resulted in the death of newly-signed Cardiff City striker Emiliano Sala and pilot Dave Ibbotson.

British police announced on Wednesday that a 64-year-old from the North Yorkshire area of England had been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter, per a report from Reuters.

"As part of this investigation, we have to consider whether there is any evidence of any suspected criminality and, as a result of our inquiries, we have arrested a 64-year-old man from the North Yorkshire area on suspicion of manslaughter by an unlawful act," Detective Inspector Simon Huxter of Dorset Police said in a statement.

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"He is assisting with our inquiries and has been released from custody under investigation.

"This matter therefore is still subject to a live investigation and I would ask the media and members of the public to refrain from speculation, as this could cause additional distress to the families involved, as well as potentially hinder the investigation.

"As is standard practice, we will not be releasing any further information as to the identity of the individual who has been arrested unless that person is charged to appear in court, and again would discourage any speculation in relation to this."

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No further details of the arrest or the investigation were made public.

Sala, 28, died when his Piper Malibu aircraft disappeared over the English Channel on January 21. His body was found two weeks later after a private search. The body of pilot Dave Ibbotson has not yet been recovered several months later, though he is officially presumed dead.