A devoted football coach, his wife and their 11-month-old daughter were killed instantly when their car veered off the A38 near Derby – a crash that also claimed the life of an 18-year-old relative and left the driver facing a dangerous driving charge.
Abubacarr Camarra, 36, known as Abu, was driving home to Leeds with his family after a youth football tournament in Birmingham on Saturday night when their red Hyundai left the carriageway and crashed into trees close to the Toyota Island, Derbyshire Police said. The driver, a 33-year-old man, survived with serious injuries and was arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving. He has since been bailed.
“Four killed, including baby, when car crashes on A38 near Derby; driver bailed on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.”
All five people in the car were from Leeds. Police were called at about 11pm on 25 July. The three adults – Camarra, his wife Isa Jaiteh, 30, and the 18-year-old woman – were pronounced dead at the scene. Baby Aisha was taken to hospital but died shortly afterwards.
Friends described Camarra as a pillar of the Gambian community in Leeds, deeply committed to steering children away from knife crime and drugs through football. Karl Jabang told Metro: “Abu was a devoted Muslim and committed community servant who inspired many young Gambian men to engage in community development, promoting unity, compassion, and positive change. He was also a passionate youth football coach, mentoring children aged 7 to 9 and using sport to teach discipline, respect, teamwork, and strong moral values.”
Mariama Sillah, who had been collecting winter clothes and sports kits for Leeds youngsters alongside Camarra, said she would continue the campaign alone in his memory. “He was our community champion,” she told Metro. “He was the core of our community. Extremely selfless, extremely dedicated, and he was quite concerned about the knife crime and getting the youths off the street. And to him, the best way he could do that was football, and he used all his weekends and days off, and dedicated them to getting these young boys off the streets onto the pitch.”
Camarra and Jaiteh leave behind two other children, who have been placed in the care of their grandparents. Jabang added: “We are grateful the driver survived the accident and pray for his full recovery.”
Police are appealing for witnesses and dashcam footage. The A38 was closed for several hours but has since reopened. The investigation continues, with the driver bailed pending further inquiries.