Raffy Tsakanika: Mother of woman killed in Qatar hit-and-run hits out at lack of answers
The mother of a young woman who died in a hit-and-run crash in Qatar said her daughter’s case is being ignored because it is “embarrassing” for both the UK and Qatari governments.
Raffy Tsakanika's mum has accused the Foreign Office (FCDO) and Qatari authorities of “burying their heads in the sand” and of hoping that the case just goes away.
Make-up artist Raffy Tsakanika, 21, was killed by a speeding driver in a hit-and-run near Doha in Qatar three years ago.
An inquest into her death concluded in Peterborough on December 7 last year.
The coroner criticised the Qatari authorities for a lack of information which was "no doubt... an added source of distress" to Ms Tsakanika's parents.
After the hearing, her parents wrote to the FCDO to request a meeting with Foreign Secretary James Cleverley, but say they have not heard back in over two months.
Ms Tsakanika's mother Jo Sullivan said: “The coroner severely criticised the Qatari authorities for failing to help him investigate Raffy's death.
"I felt certain that that criticism would sting both the Qataris and the FCDO into action and yet we have heard nothing from either of them since.
"They clearly do not understand a mother's love for their child. I will not give up this fight until I understand how Raffy died.”
Ms Sullivan previously branded Qatar an "awful country" and said her family had been forced to "scour hospital wards" by themselves as they searched for her daughter's body.
Court documents, seen by the PA news agency, show Ms Tsakanika was the passenger in a Toyota Land Cruiser which “flipped over several times”, resulting in her and her 20-year-old friend being “thrown” out of the car.
Shortly after, teacher Mubarak Al Hajri, then aged 46, was captured “racing” at 119mph.
Witnesses described Al Hajri’s driving as “reckless”, with one man telling officers he tried to catch up with him after he started to “race” another car.
The Qatari courts eventually convicted Al Hajri of causing Ms Tsakanika’s death, causing serious injuries to her friend, driving in a way that endangered lives, fleeing the scene of an accident and speeding.
He was sentenced to just two months in prison and ordered to pay compensation to Ms Tsakanika’s family.
The family's adviser and spokesman Radd Seiger has previously called on Foreign Secretary James Cleverly to put pressure on Qatari authorities and fully investigate Ms Tsakanika's death, when in Doha for the World Cup.
Mr Seiger said: "Something has gone badly wrong at the FCDO.
"Jo has asked for a meeting with James Cleverley, who has dealt with Raffy's case personally, to urge him to sort this mess out, and yet he has ignored her completely.
"When a country like Qatar abuses a British citizen as they have done here, the FCDO has an absolute duty to use its diplomatic muscle to put an end to it and to be honest and transparent with the family about what has been said and done.
"The FCDO have said publicly that they continue to support Raffy's family and are on stand by to provide further support.
"Those statements are completely untrue.
"We have not heard from them at all for two years and I call on them now to step up and work with us to extract the evidence that the Qataris have whichwill shine a light on what happened to Raffy.
"As we have seen with other cases, the value of carrying a British passport has dwindled in the eyes of the FCDO.
"They rightly rush to the assistance of foreign nationals abroad and yet seem to look down at the end of their noses at British citizens at home who need their help."
An FCDO spokesperson said: "We have provided support to the family of a woman who died in Qatar in 2019 and raised her case with the Qatari authorities at a senior level.
"We stand ready to offer further consular assistance as appropriate."