In a split second, their reckless actions have had fatal consequences. And the impact on the families left behind has been devastating.
Anyone who has attended the courts will tell you that cases of people being killed in car crashes are among the most harrowing.
Here are some of the recent cases where drivers ended up before the courts after killing someone, and in one tragic case, two people.
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The bus driver who killed two women waiting to go home
Baruania Baros
A bus driver killed two women in a ‘tragic accident’ which left his victims’ loved ones bereft. Joyce Bacon, 60, and Adele Boylin, 55, were standing waiting to board the bus in Piccadilly Gardens when they were hit by a double decker Stagecoach being driven by 35-year-old Baruania Baros.
Baros, a bus driver of four years experience with a clean driving licence, was helping a disabled passenger leave the bus when he accidentally pressed the accelerator instead of the brake pedal. The bus jolted forward and crashed into the women, causing fatal injuries.
Baros, from Ashton-under-Lyne, pleaded guilty to two counts of causing death by careless driving, and in May 2024, was given a suspended prison sentence. The judge said his pregnant wife would be harmed if Baros was locked up, and ruled that he did not pose a ‘risk or danger’ to the public.
Joyce Bacon
Mrs Bacon died on the evening of the crash, which happened on July 10, 2022, while Ms Boylin remained in hospital until she passed away on December 6, 2022. “You Baruania Baros will carry the burden of knowing your actions caused their deaths for the rest of your life, and their families will feel the terrible tragic effects of your negligence for the rest of their lives,” Judge Suzanne Goddard KC told him.
Ian Bacon, Mrs Bacon’s husband, told the court of his devastation at the loss of his wife of 15 years. “Joyce and I did everything together,” he said. “She was my best friend as well as my wife. Following the loss of Joyce I have struggled deeply with coming to terms with living my life without her.”
Adele Boylin
(Image: PA)
In a statement read on her behalf, Ms Boylin’s daughter Sophie said: “The day that my mother was struck by a bus was the start of the end of life as I knew it.” She added: “The last thing she said to me was that she loved me and she would speak to me tomorrow. I keep wishing that that tomorrow would happen.”
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Man killed by his own cousin as Range Rover and Audi raced on main road
Hassnain Ul-Haq and Hamza Hussain
(Image: GMP)
The driver of a Range Rover lost control and ploughed into a phone mast, killing his front seat passenger, after ‘racing’ with an Audi along a main road.
Danyal Ul-Haq, 23, died while a passenger in a blue Range Rover Sport, driven by his cousin Hassnain Ul-Haq. Another relative in the car, Sameer Ul-Haq, suffered serious injuries.
Manchester Crown Court heard that Hassnain Ul-Haq, from Oldham, had been ‘racing’ an Audi driven by Hamza Hussain. Hussain had never passed a driving test. Both cars had been driving at more than double the 30mph speed limit before the Range Rover lost control, on July 12, 2022.
Following the horror crash, which happened in the early hours on Hyde Road in Gorton, Hussain and his friend Romaesa Akhtar, 25, a passenger in the Audi which she owned, lied about who had been driving the car, in a bid to cover for him because he was not insured.
Hassnain Ul-Haq, 33, and Hussain, 28, have both been locked up after admitting causing death by dangerous driving. Horrifying CCTV footage of the collision was played in court, as family members watched on. Danyal Ul-Haq’s mother, Rukshana Kauser, told of her grief at her loss.
“Danyal was my only child,” she said in a statement read in court. “From the moment he was born he was the light of my life.
“He was everything to me and more. The 23 years with him were the best of my life. He loved life and spending time with his family and friends. He had a lot of time for people.
“He had a great passion for football, cricket and going to the gym and boxing. His absence has left many people devastated and heartbroken.
“What makes me more upset is that what happened was totally avoidable. He was just an innocent person in this. The recklessness of others has cost me my beautiful child.”
In December, Hassnain Ul-Haq, of Frederick Street, Oldham, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving and causing serious injury by dangerous driving. He was sentenced to five years and eight months in prison, and was banned from driving for seven years and 10 months.
Hamza Hussain, of Dunkirk Lane, Halifax, pleaded guilty to the same two charges, as well as causing death while disqualified, causing death while unlicensed or uninsured, and perverting the course of justice. He was jailed for six years and four months, and banned from the roads for eight years and two months.
Romaesa Akhtar, of Tamar Street, Bradford, pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice. She was sentenced to a 12 month community order, and ordered to complete 25 rehabilitation activity requirement days.
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‘Words can’t explain the hurt this has had on this family…’
Mohamed Mahamoud outside Manchester Crown Court
(Image: Manchester Evening News)
A taxi driver who swerved lanes without looking and a man on his way to work whilst speeding were both found responsible for the death of a much-loved great-grandma.
Mohamed Mahamoud, 38, was travelling along Princess Road, in Moss Side, in his Toyota Auris at speeds of 40mph when he came to the junction with Great Western Street on July 29, 2021.
As the lights began to change to amber he was 90 metres away but did not slow down, Manchester Crown Court heard. He got to 43 metres from the lights when they changed to red.
Mahamoud then ‘slammed on his brakes’, hitting the taxi in a glancing blow before veering onto the pavement and colliding with the traffic light. Waiting at the lights was 70-year-old Joan Spence who was struck causing catastrophic head injuries. She sadly died despite the best efforts of paramedics.
Ciid, of Trafford, pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving, and Mahamoud, of Fallowfield, was found guilty of the same offence following a trial. In October, both were handed suspended prison sentences.
Emotive victim personal statements were read to the court depicting the devastating impact of Ms Spence’s loss.
Her daughter said: “She was a very much loved mum, nanny, great-nanny and friend. She really was the heart of the family.
“Family gatherings are not the same without her. Words can’t explain the hurt this has had on this family.”
The court heard she cared for one of her daughters who passed away from ill health a number of years ago. She then took on her daughter’s children as her own.
“My nana is mine and my brother’s whole life. We wouldn’t be the people we are without her,” their statement read.
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Deliveroo driver killed elderly man after hitting him as he crossed road
The scene of the crash in Didsbury
(Image: Kenny Brown | Manchester Evening News)
A Deliveroo driver has been found guilty of causing death by careless driving after hitting an elderly man as he crossed the road.
Mustafa Sayed, 55, was en-route to deliver some food to a customer when he approached the junction of School Lane and Parrs Wood Road in Didsbury on November 14 2022.
As the lights changed from red to green he turned right onto Parrs Wood Road. At the same time Sadrudin Noormaohamed Adatia, aged 86, was slowly crossing the road with his walking aid.
Sayed struck Mr Adatia causing him to be flown into the air, Manchester Crown Court previously heard. He was rushed to hospital but sadly died as a result of his injuries the following morning.
Sayed denied causing death by driving without due care and attention, but following a two-day trial, he was unanimously found guilty by jurors following a trial in November.
Opening the case for the prosecution, Stephen Littlewood said that both roads are governed by a 30mph limit and the junction is controlled by traffic lights. Mr Sayed was driving along School Lane when the lights at the junction with Parrs Wood turned from red to green, jurors heard.
“Mr Adatia was 86-years-old and walked with an assistant mobility walker. He began to cross the road, slowly, as the defendant was approaching the junction,” Mr Littlewood said.
“When he began to cross the road the light was red telling pedestrians not to cross, though he was in the middle of the road when the defendant went to turn right.”
Mr Sayed was said to ‘briefly’ touch the brakes but did not appreciably slow his car down and collided directly with Mr Adatia, the court heard. It caused the 86-year-old to be flung across the windscreen and into the road, it was said.
Prosecutors said that Mr Sayed only braked afterwards. The collision was captured on CCTV and played to jurors during the opening of the case.
After the incident, Mr Sayed remained at the scene and other members of the public attended before paramedics took Mr Adatia to hospital. He sadly died from his injuries in the early hours of the following morning.
Sayed, of Parsonage Road, Withington, is due to be sentenced on January 17.
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‘Idiot’ driver killed grandad in head on crash
Caleb Mansfield-Marr
An ‘idiot’ driver overtook numerous cars on the wrong side of the road while driving twice the speed limit – before crashing into an elderly couple’s vehicle, killing a man.
Caleb Mansfield-Marr, 22, sped up to the junction of Ashton Road and Lingard lane in Bredbury, Stockport, in August last year. A woman felt her car ‘shake’ as he drove past, while another driver said he was ‘driving like an idiot’.
As grandparents Jack and Judith Howe turned right onto Lingard Lane, Mansfield-Marr crashed into them head-on.
Mr Howe, 76, was left with serious internal injuries and sadly died weeks later. His wife of 50-years was left with serious injuries, but made a full recovery.
Mansfield-Marr, from Hyde, was also hurt and posted a picture online of his injuries. Police later found videos on his phone – including one in which he filmed himself driving with his feet hanging out of the window.
He later pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving; causing serious injury by dangerous driving; and causing death by driving while disqualified and without insurance.
Prosecutor Robert Smith told Minshull Street Crown Court that at around 11.20am on August 5, Mrs Howe was driving her Toyota Aygo along Ashton Road in Bredbury when she approached the junction with Lingard Lane. Her husband Jack was in the passenger seat.
She gave way to several cars before making the turn. Mansfield-Marr, driving a VW Polo in the opposite direction, had already overtaken two cars on the wrong side of the road at speeds of 64mph. The road was governed by 30mph limit.
“Had the defendant been driving at 30mph, Mrs Howe would have had ample time to complete her turn without the defendant taking any action,” the prosecutor added.
The VW Polo collided with the Toyota Aygo sending both cars spinning across the junction. Mrs Howe was seriously injured. Nearby builders used angle grinders and crowbars to get her out of the car. She and her husband were rushed to hospital.
She suffered from a number of injuries including a broken pelvis and ribs, and was treated and discharged after eight weeks. Mr Howe suffered multiple injuries to his body. CT scans later showed significant wounds to his spleen as well as a collapsed lung.
Despite the best efforts of medical staff, he died on September 25.
Speaking of her husband’s death, Mrs Howe said: “The morning of 25 September 2023 changed my life forever, I became a widow. My lovely kind and caring husband of fifty years had passed away. No more companionship, conversations, laughs or celebrations to share together.
“I am healing from my injuries, but nothing can heal my loss of losing Jack, my husband and my best friend.” Their son, Richard, said: “Our world feels like a dark place without his light,” he said.
In December, Mansfield-Marr, of St Paul’s Gardens, was jailed for 12 years and banned from driving for 16 years.