Leisure firm charged after footballer electrocuted in Portsmouth

A company has been charged over the death of a five-a-side footballer who was electrocuted at a leisure centre in 2016.

Albert Xhediku, 34, received the fatal shock from a floodlight when he went to retrieve a football at the Mountbatten centre in Portsmouth.

Parkwood Community Leisure Ltd, which operated the pitch at the time, has been charged with failing to protect the public, the Health and Safety Executive said.

The firm has been ordered to appear at Portsmouth Magistrates’ Court on 4 December.

Taxi driver Mr Xhediku was playing with friends on 17 January when the ball went out of play and he climbed a fence to collect it.

While climbing, he touched a floodlight which delivered the shock, an inquest previously heard.

Mr Xhediku’s friends, who also suffered electric shocks as they pulled him down, attempted to resuscitate him but he was pronounced dead in hospital later the same evening.

In a previous statement, Mr Xhediku’s family said: “Albert was a guy who did everything with all his heart.

“Even when he was just playing football with his friends, he played like it was the championships.

“He was our big brother and a loving son.”