Kirsty MacColl’s ex-husband claims her death was covered up to protect Mexican billionare
Steve Lillywhite, the ex-husband of singer Kirsty MacColl, has opened up about her tragic death in 2000 and claimed it was covered up by the Mexican justice system.
MacColl, who had split up with Lillywhite, was on holiday in Mexico with their two teenage children and her boyfriend when the fatal accident occurred on December 18th, 2000.
The ‘Fairytale of New York’ singer was diving in a reef, situated in a watercraft restricted zone, when a powerboat came racing towards her at a high speed. While she was able to ensure the safety of her sons, MacColl was hit and killed.
Lillywhite, who was in the United States at the time, immediately got the next flight to Mexico to be with his children.
The 31ft powerboat was owned by Mexican billionaire Guillermo González Nova. Locals claimed they saw Nova at the wheel, but employee Jose Cen Yam insisted he was driving the boat, and was convicted of culpable homicide in 2003.
However, Yam avoided a prison sentence and was instead ordered to pay a measly £61 fine.
Now, in a new interview with The Sun, Lillywhite said, “They said that it was a young kid driving, but no one believes that. I think they just didn’t want to have an enormous lawsuit because he was one of the richest guys in Mexico.”
Following MacColl’s death, her mother, Jean Newlove, spearheaded a Justice for Kirsty campaign, which ended in 2009, the same year that Nova died aged 92. Newlove died in 2017, aged 94, before justice could be served.
Lillywhite heartbreakingly said of the bid for justice, “The campaign was basically really being pushed by Kirsty’s mum. And when she decided that there was not really any hope, and she was old, it ended. I think you just have to sometimes accept that life isn’t fair, and you have to move on.”
Her son, Louis, added of the campaign, “I think we managed to raise awareness and, if it saved just one person, I am happy about that, but what we would have liked was some accountability.”
In the same interview, who also produced ‘Fairytale of New York‘, admitted of hearing the song at this time of year, “It’s a bittersweet feeling because when you hear ‘Fairytale’, it does give you a good feeling. It makes you think of Christmas and everything.”
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