Unai Emery‘s sister Leslie-Ann has said she believes her brother was not at the wheel of the car when it crashed in High Legh, Cheshire, and that he is still alive.
In a series of social media posts, she has claimed the family have not been allowed to carry out their own DNA tests and said of her brother: “We know you are still out there.”
However, Warrington Coroner’s Court heard on Tuesday that there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding Samuel’s death and no suggestion of any “foul play”.
Shortly before the incident, the 37-year-old, an England under-18, under-20, and under-21 representative, had dropped his kids off at school.
The two-day inquest heard that prior to the collision, his white automobile had wandered onto the wrong side of the road and was propelled into the air by the contact.
When the collision occurred on the morning of May 15, 2018, Frederick Dare, the driver of the other automobile, testified in court that he did everything in his power to swerve out of Samuel’s path.
He informed the footballer’s family, fighting back tears, “I’m just sorry.”
Although samples of the former player’s blood suggested that he had consumed more alcohol than was recommended, toxicologist Nicola Martin cautioned that alcohol can sometimes be produced by the body after death.
The incident happened a short distance behind cyclist Neil McCabe, who described the sound of the crash as “the loudest thing I have heard”.
He said that he approached Samuel’s car, telling the court: “Looking in, I could see that it was practically black and I could see flames from where the driver’s lap would have been.”
Dr John Sellar, a forensic odontologist, told the court he was satisfied that teeth from the dead body matched a dental chart and radiographs taken from Samuel’s mouth prior to the crash
Dr Sellar said visual identification of the body was not possible as it had been “extensively burnt”, adding: “People who know the victim would not have wished to have seen those images.”
