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Avin (10) died in an accident – that's what her father said at the start of the trialAvin's heart lives on in another girl, and that's the only thing that keeps me alive
RTL meets her father for an interview at Avin's grave.
RTL
Four seconds of red and an unrestrained impact.
Almost a year after a fatal accident, the trial begins against the man (20) who took the lives of a school companion (25) and little Avin (10) in June 2025. The defendant is said to have run a red light in his car in Hürth near Cologne and hit a group of elementary school students. RTL spoke to Avin's father Amir Vala before the start.
Defendant takes full responsibility
When the trial began on Monday (May 18), the 20-year-old took responsibility for the accident. The man is charged with, among other things, negligent homicide and negligent bodily harm. “I caused a terrible accident in which two young people died,” said a statement read out by the defense attorney.
While two students slightly injured their feet in the impact, the ten-year-old and a school companion (25) were hit head-on and thrown through the air. Both suffer, among other things, serious head injuries. The girl dies two days after the accident and the 25-year-old dies nine days after the accident.
In court, the driver accepted responsibility for the accident.
Henning Kaiser/dpa
But that doesn't bring Avin back. In the RTL interview at Avin's grave, her father says: “No matter what punishment he faces. It doesn't matter to me. Because my daughter is lying here. And no matter what punishment it is. It doesn't change the fact. So, I'll never see my daughter again.”
Reading tip: Car drives into a group of people – one injured person is still in danger of death
Amir Vala: “The only thing that calms me down a bit is that I know that the heart of Avignon still beats.”
RTL
Avin and the school companion went through the green light
The father doesn't want to talk about the day on which the most horrific thing he's ever experienced happened. The pain of the loss is too deep. What keeps him alive is his daughter's donated heart. A six-year-old girl received organ donation. “That calms me down (…). She can also fall in love sometimes. She can also express her feelings for others through it. And she can just move on in this life.”he says through tears.
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Defendant (20) has multiple previous convictions under juvenile criminal law
The 20-year-old has already been convicted several times under juvenile criminal law. In addition to negligent homicide and bodily harm, he is also accused of violating the weapons law and trafficking around 122 grams of cannabis. A verdict in the case is expected to be pronounced in early June.
Her father comes to the grave less often, but her mother every evening and lights a candle.
Amir Vala: “Every second of this year has passed like years for me”
What does the grieving father expect or hope for from the process? “I just hope whatever the result is that fewer accidents like this happen. For the other people. For the other children,” said Amir Vala.
“Every second of this year has passed like years for me. And that's not something that's getting any less. You just can't get rid of this feeling and forget it. Or that it's getting weaker. So in life, nothing changes at all. My feelings and the facts,” he reports in front of the RTL camera.
Vala does not appear in court at the start of the trial. Only his wife and son accompany the lawyer into the courtroom at the Cologne regional court. The pain of going through the same thing again is too great. “I just can't go there. I can't look into his eyes. I can't sit in the same courtroom with him. I don't know what's coming, but I know this – that these aren't good feelings and I really can't stand that.”
Sources used: Own RTL research, dpa
