Driver jailed over death of North East grandmother

A driver who killed a grandmother in a head-on crash has been jailed for six years

Thirty-one-year-old car rental worker Alin Jar , of Clifton Road, Aberdeen, was on the wrong side of the road when his car ploughed into the Renault Megane driven by Amanda Todd on the A90 Aberdeen to Fraserburgh near to Toll of Birness on March 5, 2016.

In the Megane along with Mrs Todd were her husband, her mother 57-year-old Jamesina Stewart and two children aged three and six.

Seconds before the horror crash Mrs Stewart and the children were singing in the back seat. She was sitting in the middle with a child on either side of her.

Mrs Stewart died at the scene and her daughter Mrs Todd's legs were crushed.

Earlier at the High Court in Glasgow judge Lord Woolman banned Jar from driving for eight years and told him: “Mrs Stewart sat in the middle of the back seat. She was singing along with the two children. Suddenly your car came along on the wrong side of the carriageway. There was a head-on collision. “

Lord Woolman said that one driver described Jar's driving as “ridiculous,” and another eye witness said: “Some nutcase pulled out on the wrong side with no chance of overtaking safely.”

When Jar crashed he was on his way to deliver a Vauxhall Meriva.

Mrs Todd needed to have four operations on her legs and has been left with a noticeable limp.

The occupants of the Megane had been on a Mother’s Day weekend trip to the Happy Plant Garden Centre in Mintlaw and were heading towards Ellon.

Jar was convicted of causing Mrs Stewart's death by driving dangerously. He has two previous convictions from 2014 for speeding.

David Moggach said: “Mr Jar has asked me to express his deepest apologies and condolences to the family.

“He was brought up in Romania and came to Scotland for a better life. He was seriously injured himself in the crash.”

In victim impact statements Mrs Stewart was described as a “life-giving and loving personality.'

Mrs Todd described her mother as “not just a mum, but a confidant and best friend' and added she did not know how to express her loss."