Wrong-way driver, 86, jailed for killing rider

Ex-policeman died on M20 after being hit by oncoming car

An 86-year-old man who drove the wrong way along the M20, causing the death of a motorcyclist, has been jailed.

Leonard Pettifer was at the wheel of his Ford Ka when it struck 60-year-old former policeman Michael Copleston, from Hawkinge, on the coastbound carriageway near Ashford last November.

Pettifer, of Snargate Lane, Snargate, Romney Marsh, pleaded guilty to causing the death of Mr Copleston earlier this year and was sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court on Monday.

The court saw footage of Pettifer driving London-bound between Junctions 9- 10, despite cars flashing at him for almost three miles, before Mr Copleston’s motorbike “somersaulted” over his Ford Ka.

Additionally, the court heard how Pettifer, by his own admission, wasn’t wearing glasses and the windows of his car, apart from the windscreen, were covered in ice.

In his first interview, Pettifer said he was “low on petrol” so decided to carry on the wrong way up the motorway to get back to Ashford.

In another interview, the 86-year-old said he did not Judge Heather Norton sentenced Leonard Pettifer, right, to 32 months, of which 16 must be spent in prison understand the “implications” of turning round on the motorway and admitted he hadn’t driven on one for two to three years.

The court heard Mr Copleston was travelling above the speed limit but Judge Heather Norton said that was “irrelevant”.

Sentencing Pettifer she said: “A collision was not caused by the speed of his motorbike, it was caused by your car driving the wrong way on the motorway.”

He was sentenced to 32 months, of which 16 must be spent in prison.

Mr Copleston’s widow Pauline told in her witness impact statement how she has been forced to sell their Hawkinge home, with Mr Copleston being the “breadwinner”.

She also urged the DVLA to carry out a review of all drivers over 70, to prevent another tragedy.

She added: “That night, at around 1.30am I tried to call his mobile. Then the front door went and it was the beginning of my whole life shattering.

“We would have been married for 40 years now.”

The court heard how Pettifer, who admitted causing death by driving dangerously, had since shown remorse.

Mr Copleston was a devoted husband to his wife Pauline of 39 years, a father to two and grandfather to four.

He served in the Metropolitan Police for three decades and was an advanced motorcycle and car instructor who trained other officers in road safety.