Trucker killed mum as he fixed a satnav
A LITHUANIAN lorry driver who killed a mother when he careered into her car while trying to fix his satnav has been jailed.
Edvard Musik, 46, ploughed into Angela Knight’s Ford Fiesta which was stationary in traffic and caused “catastrophic” brain injuries, a court was told.
She was declared dead at the scene. The former Russian army soldier was 13 hours into his shift after driving from Europe to make drop- offs in England before the pile- up on the M606 in West Yorkshire.
Impact
Bradford Crown Court was told Musik was approaching the exit of the northbound carriageway in his 35- ton articulated lorry when he crashed into Mrs Knight, 47, on October 7 last year.
Three other people were injured, including another driver who was left fighting for his life.
Jonathan Sharp, prosecuting, said: “A connection to his satnav had become loose and he was leaning across the cab to deal with it.
“He returned his attention to the road just before he was to collide with the Fiesta. The impact speed was between 41 and 45mph. The Fiesta spun several times and collided hard with the Renault Laguna in front of it. The Laguna, in turn, collided with a lorry.”
The mother of two, of Lymm, Cheshire, was on her way to visit her daughter Sophie, 19, a student at Bradford University.
Musik, of Leicester, who pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving, had started his shift in Europe at 1am the day of the accident.
From Dover, he made deliveries in Birmingham before travelling to Bradford. The court heard he had taken his regulation number of breaks during his shift.
Musik, who appeared in court with an interpreter, wept as he was jailed for four years by the Recorder of Bradford, Judge Roger Thomas QC.
He had no previous convictions and had an unblemished record, having been driving lorries for 26 years after leaving the Russian army in 1988.
Paul Walker, mitigating, told the court Musik wrote to Mrs Knight’s family to apologise for the “horrific accident” and had been in tears at the roadside.
Tragic
Jailing Musik, Judge Thomas told him: “This was an utterly avoidable accident if you were paying any attention whatsoever.
“The consequences of that for Mrs Knight’s family and friends are truly terrible. Whatever sentence I pass will be of very little comfort to them.”
Musik was also banned driving for five years.
Speaking after the case, Sgt Carole Greaves said: “This case is another tragic reminder of what can happen when a motorist takes their eyes off the road. It is vital that road users pay attention at all times as situations can change in a split- second.”
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