Just seven years’ jail for show-off driver who killed passenger in 110mph smash
THE 13-year-old daughter of a woman killed in a horror crash caused by a “show-off” driver yesterday slammed his seven-and-a-half year jail sentence as a “horrible outcome”.
Beautician Yagmur Ozden, 33, died of multiple injuries when she was thrown from a Range Rover as it ploughed through a Tesla dealership and ended up in a “mangled heap” on a railway track.
But driver Rida Kazem, 24, who had his left leg amputated below the knee after he was also thrown from the car, could be released after serving two-thirds of his sentence – so he may be free in just five years.
Speaking outside court after the sentencing, Melek said: “I’m not really happy with the sentence today.”
She added that Kazem made a remark as the family left court. She said: “It didn’t show he was sorry and there was no respect.
“And the outcome was horrible and I don’t really like the sentence.”
She said: “Hopefully my mum does get justice some day.”
Tragic Yagmur’s sister Maya Kodsi, 37, said: “We left the court in so much pain. They took the decision – it’s not enough and it’s not fair. There’s no punishment in this country.”
She added: “This is so painful for us. What is wrong with British justice? He has killed my sister and will be out in a few years.”
The crash happened as Kazem drove Yagmur home from a night out in the early hours of August 22 last year.
His other passenger, Zamarod Arif, who was 26 at the time, was the only one wearing a seatbelt but suffered serious injuries, including a broken arm and leg. There were gasps and sobs from Yagmur’s relatives as CCTV footage of the crash was played at Isleworth Crown Court.
It showed Kazem’s black Range Rover Sport SVR, valued at £180,000, hitting 110mph in a 40mph zone before he lost control. It struck a Tesla car being charged up by a taxi driver before landing on the tracks at Park Royal Tube station in North West London.
Kazem, of Greenford,West London, who worked for a family jewellery business, had previously admitted causing death and serious injury by dangerous driving. Jailing him, Judge Martin Edmunds KC said: “The speed and violence of this...crash is simply horrific and the Range Rover was reduced to a mangled heap of metal.
Blame
“I have no doubt you were showing off to your passengers – both showing off your powerful car, but also what you thought of as your superior driving skills. What is all too clear is your skills were all too inadequate.”
Kazem, who had previous driving convictions, stared straight ahead as victim impact statements were read out. One from Melek said Yagmur, of Finchley Road, North West London, was her “best friend”.
She added: “Every time I see a Range Rover I remember the accident so I can’t get away from it.
“I blame the driver for taking my mum away. I believe he’s acting like it never happened.”
Judge Edmunds, who also handed Kazem a 12-year driving ban, told the court that he found “no evidence of real remorse”.
But David Rhodes, defending, said: “He knows he has taken a life...and left a young girl without a mother.”