Family of woman who was struck by Lufthansa CEO's wife is ‘destroyed' over her tragic death
Gaia Costa, a 24-year-old babysitter, was walking across a pedestrian crossing in Sardinia earlier this week when she was struck, according to local outlet II Sole 24 ORE.
'At this time, we must respect the pain of a destroyed family,' said Antonello Desini, a lawyer for the Costa family, per Italian media.
Desini added that his 'clients have the utmost confidence in the work of the Tempio Public Prosecutor's Office,' who will be handling the case.
The New York Post reports that Costa's father is a well-known unionist for Confederazione Italiana Sindacati Lavoratori – one of the largest trade union organizations in Italy.
The incident occurred on Tuesday at around 1.00 p.m. Local media reported that 51-year-old Vivian Spohr was driving a BMW X5 SUV with her daughter as a passenger, when the crash occurred.
Witnesses told police that they saw Costa extend her arm to signal for the driver to stop, but instead watched as the vehicle accelerated, striking her.
'Vivian Spohr, who was involved in the tragic death, expresses her dismay and deep regret over this very serious accident, which has devastated a family, the town of Tempio, and the entire community of Gallura,' a statement released Friday by Spohr's attorneys read.
The statement added that Spohr places herself 'at the complete disposal of the Italian judicial authorities for the necessary investigations and, while aware that such a great personal loss cannot be repaired, will take steps to mitigate its consequences.'
Emergency services at the scene attempted to revive Costa for around 20 minutes before pronouncing her dead at the scene as a result of severe head trauma.
Reports suggest authorities are investigating whether Spohr was using her phone at the time of the incident. Her alcohol and drug tests were negative, according L'Unione Sarda.
The Spohr family had been spending time at a home they own on the island close to the community of Porto Cervo. After the collision, the family returned to Germany.
Carsten Spohr has been the CEO of Deutsche Lufthansa AG since May 2014. He runs the Lufthansa Group, comprising the business segments of Network Airlines, Eurowings, Logistics, and MRO. They have over 100,000 employees worldwide.
An autopsy on the body of Costa will be carried out on Wednesday.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
2 hours ago
- Forbes
If You See This Message, Your Amazon Account Is Under Attack
Attacks suddenly surge 5000%. A new warning has just been issued for millions of Amazon users, as a new wave of attacks on accounts has suddenly surged 5000%. This will come at you by text message, which is nothing new. Between undelivered packages, unpaid tolls and motoring fines, the scale of text attacks sweeping the U.S. and Europe is 'out of control.' The team at Guardio tells me that these new 'Amazon refund scam texts' have surged 'more than 50 times in the past two weeks.' Even in the world of text message attacks, that's some increase. 'These texts began appearing shortly after Prime Day, which started two weeks ago on July 8,' and spawned plenty of other attacks as well. The texts are nothing to do with Amazon, and the attackers do not even know you have an account. They're just playing a numbers game and most of you do. 'The link in the message leads to a fake Amazon site designed to steal your account details and hack it.' Amazon warns that 'scammers may send text messages claiming to be Amazon,' and that account holders should be 'mindful' if they 'receive a text message for orders or deliveries that you are not expecting.' It's the same for refunds. Fake Amazon texts and login But again this is a numbers game. The attackers assume you will have made a recent purchase on Amazon and who doesn't want an unexpected refund? The link is a short-code to beat Amazon's other warning to watch for misspelled URLs. If you receive this text, and many millions of you will. delete it immediately per the advice from the FBI and state and local police forces. If you have any doubts, log into your Amazon account using your app or usual methods and check there. These text attacks are now an industry with billions of messages sent. Campaigns are being driven by organized criminal gangs, largely out of China and beyond the reach of U.S. law enforcement. The telecoms networks filter out plenty of texts, but attackers use farms of normal phones and SIMs to bypass normal checks. The hope is that there will be a technical solution at some point. Google's AI-driven scam detection is one such hope, as are new solutions from elsewhere. Trend Micro warns that '30% of consumers have been scammed online, nearly 40% didn't realize it until they'd already lost money and most didn't use any tech to verify the scam — relying on instinct alone.' Its new ScamCheck tech is another potential bandaid.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
SJI International resumes overseas trips amid ongoing probe into student's death in Maldives in 2024
SINGAPORE – St Joseph's Institution (SJI) International has resumed its outdoor education expeditions, about a year after its 15-year-old Singaporean student Jenna Chan died on one of these trips in the Maldives. This comes as investigations into the incident on Nov 8, 2024, are ongoing. An internal review of the school's overseas trip protocols and safety processes, commissioned soon after the tragedy, is still under way. Reports indicated the SJI International student was fatally struck by the propeller of a running boat while snorkelling near Alif Dhaalu Atoll's Dhigurah island, where she was participating in a research project with charity Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme. In a written reply to The Straits Times on July 10, Dr Michael Johnston, principal of SJI International, said the Maldivian authorities hold primary investigative powers. No findings have been shared with the school despite attempts to engage them, the related organisations and the boat crew, he added. He said officers from the Maldives Police Service, assisted by the Singapore Police Force (SPF), came to the school in May 2025 to interview students and a teacher who had been on the trip. ST contacted the Maldivian authorities, but did not receive a reply. In response to queries, a Ministry of Education (MOE) spokeswoman on July 15 said the ministry has been in touch with the school's board of governors, and that it will not be investigating its management. The school had followed its safety processes for overseas trips, she added. The Singapore authorities do not have legal jurisdiction to investigate incidents abroad, she said, adding that the SPF has been assisting the Maldivian authorities with the case. Parents of students at the school, speaking on condition of anonymity, are calling for more transparency and updates as expeditions have resumed. The trips, set to be held in November, are compulsory for Grade 9 students, which is equivalent to the Secondary 3 level. In briefing slides seen by ST, which were presented to parents and students in May, students were given nine options. These include a biodiversity and research programme in Kinabatangan, Sabah; a pilgrimage trek in Japan; a Himalayan rafting expedition in Dehradun, India; sea kayaking in Langkawi; and the only local option, a sailing and rainforest exploration in Singapore. On the 2024 incident, the parent of a Grade 9 boy said the school failed to clearly outline safety measures taken, acknowledge missteps, or explain next steps. He said he would like more reassurance that the school has 'toughened up' the way it evaluates service providers. 'I'll be lying if I told you we were not worried.' A retiree in her 50s, who has a daughter in Grade 10, said she was expecting a follow-up review for parents to give their feedback on these expeditions, discuss their objectives, and where the school's safety procedures should be improved. Some parents acknowledged the benefits of outdoor programmes but wanted more information about the service providers chosen by the school. During a session in May, parents asked about the school's vetting processes, emergency and safety procedures, and details like staff-to-student ratio. The school should be open about the number of service providers it vets, its selection and risk assessment process, said a parent of a 16-year-old student. The 53-year-old, who works in the healthcare industry, added: 'It is not enough to say that a provider was 'well-regarded' or had been used before.' Dr Johnston said the school had applied the same checks it uses for all trips before approving the Maldives expedition. This included reviewing the provider's safety procedures and doing its own risk assessment of the activities. He added that the school is working closely with other international schools and MOE to strengthen safety standards and share lessons across the sector. Mr Alan Chan, Jenna's father, told ST he hopes that MOE can also have greater oversight over the operations of privately funded schools in areas related to student welfare and reporting of serious incidents. Mr Chan, 59, who is retired, said: 'I'm focusing on this gap because it seems the most straightforward to fix. It's too late for my family, but I hope to prevent the same fate from befalling others.' The MOE spokeswoman said that privately funded schools, including SJI International, are for international students and locals who prefer an alternative schooling option. 'These schools are outside the mainstream school system and have autonomy over their operations, policies and governance.' MOE engages such schools to share practices, including overseas trip planning and safety measures. Jenna's incident has reinforced the need for strong safety guidelines when organising overseas trips, said Mr Delane Lim, secretary-general of the Outdoor Learning & Adventure Education Association. In January, the association published guidelines detailing training and certification requirements to ensure activities are conducted safely and proficiently. While the guidelines are designed for local programmes, Mr Lim said schools can refer to them when vetting operators abroad and evaluating programme safety, especially in unfamiliar settings. Source: The Straits Times © SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction Discover how to enjoy other premium articles here
CBS News
3 hours ago
- CBS News
Bicyclist killed by hit-and-run driver in Sun Valley
A 52-year-old bicyclist was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver in the Sun Valley area on Monday night, and police say that they're still searching for the suspect. It happened at around 10:50 p.m. on Lankershim Boulevard south of Arminta Street, according to a news release from the Los Angeles Police Department. Investigators say that a white pickup truck was traveling south on Lankershim when it struck the bicyclist as he crossed the same street outside of a marked crosswalk. "The driver of the pickup truck continued southbound on Lankershim Boulevard without stopping to identify themselves or render aid as required by law," police said. The bicyclist was taken to a nearby hospital where he later died. He has not yet been identified pending notification of next of kin. Neighbors told CBS News Los Angeles that the man was on his way home from the grocery store, evidenced by the merchandise scattered around the scene of the collision. One man said that the victim was a caregiver for his wife. As with all fatal hit-and-run collision in Los Angeles, the Hit-and-Run Reward Program Trust Fund allows up to a $50,000 reward for anyone who provides information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of the alleged suspect.
