Conviction after Elgin grandmother killed in head-on A90 smash

An Aberdeen driver is facing years in jail after he was convicted of killing a grandmother in a horror head on smash while she was on a Mother's Day weekend trip with her family.

Alin Jar was working as a driver for a car hire firm when the Vauxhall Meriva he was driving ploughed into a Renault Megane carrying 57-year-old Jamesina Stewart on the A90 in Aberdeenshire.

Mrs Stewart - known as Ina - was killed at the scene while her daughter, Amanda Todd, suffered horrific injuries.

Jar - who has two previous convictions for speeding and had eight points on his licence at the time of the incident - was alleged to have caused her death by dangerous driving.

Prosecutors alleged he drove while under the influence of morphine and the court heard he was found with the drug in his bloodstream hours after the crash.

A jury earlier found him unanimously guilty of causing death by dangerous driving - but removed the allegation he had driven while under the influence of morphine.

A judge told Jar victim impact statements produced in the case made it clear his actions had been "devastating" for Mrs Stewart's family.

The trial at the High Court in Aberdeen heard Jar was working as a driver for a car hire firm when the crash happened.

Grandmother Mrs Stewart, 57, of Elgin, Moray, was killed at the scene following a smash on the A90 road near Ellon, Aberdeenshire, on March 5 2016 - the day before Mother's Day.

Her daughter, Amanda Todd, told the court she, her husband, her mother and two children had gone for a family trip to the Happy Plant Garden Centre in Mintlaw, Aberdeenshire.

After having lunch there they headed south, towards Ellon, Aberdeenshire, to visit a supermarket.

But seconds after turning on the A90 they saw a Vauxhall Meriva, driven by Jar, heading straight for them on the wrong side of the road.

Mrs Todd, 37, a secretary at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, broke down in tears as she told of the moment the car ploughed into her motor.

She said: "I knew it was inevitable that I couldn't brake in time. We impacted and then I was unconscious.

"When I regained consciousness the children were out of the car but my mum was still in the vehicle.

"The fire crew were trying to extract me but it took quite a long time because the car had crushed my legs and every time they tried to pull me out it kept collapsing on my legs.

"I was taken to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary and was in high dependency for three days.

"I have had four surgeries since."

Mrs Todd told the court that she had suffered a broken tibia, fibia, femur and pelvis and had had to have skin grafts to close open wounds on her legs, leaving her scarred.

Her husband, Malcolm Todd, 37, an account manager for an oil field chemical firm, said the Meriva was in the wrong lane when it collided head on with his family's car.

He said: "As the car came towards us it moved right into our lane.

"It filled our lane and there was nowhere to go.

"It was a sharp impact - the windscreen shattered and we spun around quickly.

"The children were screaming and my mother-in-law was slumped forward.

"When I got in the ambulance I was told my mother-in-law had passed away."

Advocate depute Bernard Ablett asked: "Was there anything to explain the collision other than the manner of driving of the other vehicle?"

He replied: "No."

Jar, 31, of Clifton Road, Aberdeen, denied a charge of causing death by dangerous driving.

On the fifth day of his trial a jury of six men and nine women took two hours and ten minutes to find him unanimously guilty of that charge.

Jar had earlier offered to plead guilty to the reduced charge of causing death by careless driving.

Judge Lord Woolman deferred sentence until June 6 at the High Court in Glasgow and remanded Jar in custody meantime.