Driver jailed after 115mph spree in 30 zone in Meir killing passenger
Paul Hammersley was pronounced dead in November last year
A man has been jailed after admitting causing the death of his passenger by dangerous driving on Sandon Road in Meir last year.
Rafakat Abbas, aged 30, from Lilleshall Street in Dresden, pleaded guilty in May 2021 to causing the death of 65-year-old Paul Hammersley, from Meir, on 3 November 2020.
He was sentenced at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court on Friday (2 July 2021) to four years in prison, handed a four-year driving ban and will be required to take an extended driving test.
The court heard how Abbas had been the driver of a grey Audi A4 in the early hours of the morning of 3 November 2020 when it was involved in a single-vehicle collision on Sandon Road in Meir at the junction of Queensmead Road.
Mr Hammersley, who was the front seat passenger in the vehicle, was pronounced dead at the scene a short time later.
During their investigation, forensic collision experts determined that the Audi was travelling at 115 miles-per-hour as it approached the right-hand bend, on a 30 mile-per-hour road.
Abbas lost control of the vehicle, and following its collision with a residential wall, the vehicle was found on its roof.
The driver was later requested to provide a specimen of blood for analysis, but failed to do so.
Abbas then admitted during police interview that a quantity of cannabis found at the scene belonged to him.
PC Martin Colclough, the investigating officer from the Staffordshire and West Midlands Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: “Abbas’s driving that morning was nothing less than dangerous.
“Travelling at a speed over three times the speed limit of the road into the right-hand bend was only going to end in tragedy.
“This was an avoidable collision and I would urge people to consider their speed and driving style when using the roads, regardless of the time of day.”
Following the sentencing, Mr Hammersley’s brother Gary and his partner Kazza Teague, said: “We are so missing Paul and were mortified by his death.
“He was our life and soul and we miss him dearly.”
Mr Hammersley’s partner, Elaine Hoye, added: “I have had to live with this nightmare since the day Paul lost his life and it was the worst experience of my life.
“We had been together for twenty-seven years and not only was he my partner he was my soul mate and I loved him deeply.”