Sister of 21-year-old killed in crash shares heartbreaking tribute as police refer themselves to watchdog
6 March 2023, 21:16 | Updated: 7 March 2023, 01:47
The sister of a party-goer killed in a Welsh car crash alongside two friends has said she hopes her sister is "safe up there", as police referred themselves to an independent watchdog following claims they dismissed worried relatives concerns.
Sherridan Borg, 23, paid her emotional tribute to her sister Evie, as it was revealed the crash came eight years on from the death of her older sibling in another fatal crash caused by a drug driver.
The body of Evie Smith, 21, was discovered inside the wreckage of a Volkswagen Tiguan late on Sunday night after a widespread search by volunteers and police, alongside the bodies of Darcy Ross, 21, and Rafel Jeanne, 24.
The five were last spotted on haunting CCTV footage at around 2am on Saturday morning after a night out in Newport, South Wales, with the alarm was raised by relatives after they each failed to return home.
Sophie Russon, 20, and Shane Loughlin, 32, were both discovered alive inside the crashed vehicle and remain in hospital.
In a tribute, Sherridan said: "Eve, My beautiful little sister I've cried laughed and fought with you every week, but I've never been without you."
Sherridan's older sister, Hairdresser Xana, 19, was killed instantly in 2015 when she was a passanger in a car hit by friend Sakhawat Ali, then 23 - a driver who had mixed cocaine, cannabis and was twice the drink-drive limit.
It comes as the mother of critically injured Russo called out police for their handling of the case, as she recalled how her daughter lay trapped inside the crashed vehicle for 48 hours beside her three dead friends.
Anna Certowicz, mother of Russon, says police dismissed her worries, suggesting her daughter was "probably out partying" according to the MailOnline.
Certowicz, 41, spoke out after 200 people joined the search for her daughter and four other friends in in Cardiff after the individuals were reported missing to police.
Certowicz's daughter remains in a critical but stable condition in hospital after undergoing surgery for a bleed on the brain, alongside sustaining fractures to her neck, spine, and face, it's reported.
Gwent Police have now referred themselves to the Independent Office for Police Conduct IOPC following criticism of their handling of the case.
It comes as the mother-of-three revealed her daughter was "conscious some of the time" she remained trapped in the vehicle off the A48 in Cardiff.
Emotionally recounting how her daughter repeatedly "called out but no one was close enough to hear her", Certowicz, said that at one point during the search she was just 20 yards from the wreckage of the VW Tiguan without realising.
Speaking emotionally of her daughter's discovery, Certowicz, told the MailOnline that it was in fact a female volunteer with her dog who discovered the wreckage - and not the police.
"I feel terrible for the families of Eve and Darcy, they were all best friends and had known each other since they were small," said Certowicz.
She added that fellow survivor Shane had only met the group for the first time on Friday night.
"It's too awful to imagine what she went through trapped in the car in the dark until it got light and then dark again over two days. Sophie was lying there for all that time, they could all have been found much quicker if the police had started searching straight away," added Certowicz.
