Banned killer driver facing jail after getting behind wheel

Angus man admits driving while still disqualified after fatal crash

An Angus man who killed a Perth taxi driver in a high-speed Dundee crash eight years ago is facing a return to jail after admitting driving while disqualified and failing to provide a breath sample.

Halim Cholmeley, 43, of Broomhill, Glen Prosen, appeared from custody before Sheriff Jillian Martin-Brown at Forfar Sheriff Court yesterday.

He admitted driving while disqualified on March 5 near Lednathie Estate in rural Angus and at Medecinewell Drive, Montrose.

He further admitted failing to submit a sample of his breath when requested.

Cholmeley pleaded guilty to the two charges during a brief hearing and sentence was deferred.

He was remanded in custody and will appear in court again next week in connection with the case.

Cholmeley was previously jailed for six years in 2010 at the High Court in Edinburgh for killing a Perth taxi driver on the Kingsway in Dundee on March 15 2009.

He had been drinking alcohol in the company of his now ex-partner and friends in the afternoon and evening before the fatal collision.

Around midnight he returned by taxi to his ex-partner’s flat before going out again to a nightclub.

Some time before 2.30am he returned to the flat and removed the keys to the woman’s BMW, without her permission or knowledge, and drove off.

He then sped down the Kingsway and crashed into a taxi.

The impact at the Myrekirk roundabout spun 41-year-old Gavin McCabe’s cab around and catapulted him out on to the road.

Mr McCabe was so seriously injured he died in intensive care at Ninewells Hospital a week later.

Investigating officers calculated Cholmeley was travelling at a minimum speed of 77mph shortly before the collision and at around 67mph at the point of impact with the Skoda taxi.

Cholmeley’s alcohol level after the collision was 106 mgs against a legal limit of 80 mgs.

Several witnesses — civilian, emergency services and medical staff — stated Cholmeley said it had been his intention to commit suicide.