A Moroccan passenger train driver has been charged with "involuntary homicide" over last month's horrific accident which left seven people dead and over 125 injured.
The driver has been referred to the Court of First Instance in Salé, a town near the capital Rabat and risks a maximum sentence of five years in prison. Following investigations, public prosecutors have said the driver's "excessive speed" caused the train to go off the rails.
The train was traveling at 158 kilometers per hour, exceeding the speed limit - which is 60 kilometers per hour - by more than half.
The judge has postponed the trial until Nov. 13.
According to City Lab, the derailment of the train is considered the "deadliest since 1993" when two commuter trains collided, killing 14 people and injuring at least 100 others.
The recent accident took place halfway between the Moroccan capital Rabat and the town of Kenitra, and at least one wagon toppled over in the crash.
The accident occurred during the final stage of state-owned railway operator ONCF's plan to launch a high-speed train between Casablanca and Tangier by the end of 2018.
ONCF had received a $92 million loan from the French Development Agency (AFD) to fund the last phase of the project, according to Morocco World News.
Not the first accident of its kind in Morocco
In 1993, a passenger train between Marrakech and Tangier collided with a cargo train, leaving at least 15 people dead.
In Aug. 2012, at least 50 people were injured when three cars of a passenger train - between Fez and Oujda - derailed.
Two years later, more than 30 people were injured after the derailment of a train linking Casablanca and Fez, which left one person dead.
In Jan. 2018, a train coming from Settat, a town near Casablanca, crashed into a light pole. One month later, a freight train collided with a vehicle, killing at least six people, and injuring 14 others.