Street racer ‘ruined young dad’s life’
DANGER DRIVER WEEPS AS HE IS JAILED
A STREET-RACING driver with a ‘need for speed’ ploughed into a young dad and nearly killed him in an 80mph pursuit on Cheetham Hill Road.
Muhammad Jawaid, 24, left Muhammad Rahat, 25, with a brain injury after smashing into his car north of Manchester city centre.
Jawaid was being followed by police, had sped through lights and was trying to overtake on the wrong side of the road at the time of the head-on, early hours crash in his ‘powerful,’ modified Mercedes AMG.
He had been issued with FOUR warnings by police due to his driving in the six months before the crash. Now a judge has now demanded an explanation as to why he wasn’t brought to court earlier.
Jawaid first came to the attention of a police patrol car shortly before 1.30am on Sunday, December 3 last year after he was seen speeding through a set of traffic lights ‘in tandem’ with a black Audi. Officers believed he might be racing. The judge who later sent him down said he was ‘certain’ that was the case.
Police followed Jawaid for a short time before activating their blue lights, but he failed to stop and continued to accelerate.
A short time after that, he smashed into Mr Rahat, who was out in the early hours collecting medication for his sick children.
The pursuit lasted less than half a mile, but officers reached speeds of up to 80mph in the 30mph zone, Manchester Crown Court was told.
Jawaid sat with his head bowed and wept in the dock as footage from the police vehicle was played in court. It showed officers approaching the wreckage of the two cars in the immediate aftermath of the crash. Both vehicles, including the £30,000 Mercedes, were written off and Mr Rahat was rushed to hospital.
It was ‘miraculous’ Mr Rahat wasn’t killed, the court heard, but he was left with a bleed on the brain and other serious injuries to his lower body, which, along with psychological scars he suffered, had a ‘devastating’ impact on him. He needed 80 screws to help repair a broken pelvis, had pins put in his legs which left him temporarily unable to work, and he still gets regular headaches as a result of the head injury, Michael Brady, prosecuting, said.
Jawaid pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving and driving without insurance at an earlier hearing. Mr Brady said in January 2016, Jawaid was given six points for driving without insurance, and then between February and June 2017 he was given four separate Section 59 warnings for his ‘anti-social’ driving. They included one in February for suspected racing, in which he was revving his engine and jumping traffic on Deansgate, and one in April 2017 after he and a ‘convoy’ of other cars deliberately drove slowly to block all the lanes of traffic, causing a tailback on the M62 in West Yorkshire. Jawaid was said to be traumatised by what had happened and ‘deeply and genuinely remorseful’ James Heyworth, defending, claimed – adding that his client had ‘prayed for Mr Rahat every day.’ Judge Anthony Cross QC said Jawaid’s case was so serious he could only send him straight to jail.
The defendant, of Whalley New Road, Blackburn, shouted ‘I’m sorry, I love you’ to his family members who cried out and sobbed in the public gallery as he was sentenced to a year and eight months behind bars. Jawaid was also banned from driving for five years and must take an extended re-test.
Judge Cross has asked for a written explanation within a week, via counsel in the case, as to who made the decisions to only issue warnings for his driving and not bring him to court sooner.
Before he was led away, the judge told Jawaid: “Mr Rahat did suffer serious injury. Both his personal and business life have been greatly affected. His life has been ruined by your need for speed.”
Both Mr Rahat’s personal and business life have been greatly affected Judge Anthony Cross QC