Driver’s 60mph revenge attack on biker who had bumped his Audi’s door
A DRIVER mowed down a stationary motorcyclist at 60mph after the biker accidentally bumped the door of his Audi A4.
Robbie Cheetham, 23, was angry at the minor damage because his car had been repaired only the previous day, a court heard.
He scoured the streets after the srape, and soon found that father-of-four Callum Bracchi, 26, had pulled over by the roadside to check his motorbike.
A witness described how Cheetham was travelling at around 60mph when he hurtled head-on over Mr Bracchi, leaving a scene of ‘carnage’.
Mr Bracchi flew through the air, breaking his legs. His bike was dragged along under Cheetham’s car, which carried on with enough force to shunt a parked Vauxhall the length of three houses.
He was jailed for 11 years by a judge who told him he had used his car as a weapon. His victim narrowly survived but was in hospital for a month with both legs shattered. He may never fully recover, Teesside Crown Court heard.
Cheetham was already serving a suspended prison sentence for dangerous driving after fleeing police at 90mph in his grandfather’s powerful BMW. The terrifying pur- suit ended when he crashed into a parked car.
In the second case, prosecutor Shaun Dodds said Mr Bracchi had accidentally bumped the door of Cheetham’s £10,000 Audi with the wheel of his motorbike as Cheetham’s girlfriend opened the door in Dormanstown, near Redcar, North Yorkshire.
Mr Dodds said: ‘This case is about revenge. The defendant was furious someone had caused damage to his car. Mr Bracchi was stationary and checking his bike over when the defendant saw him and drove at him headon at speed after swerving on to the other side of the road. The Jailed: Robbie Cheetham victim, who had been sitting on his bike, was thrown from the motorcycle, which went under the Audi and was dragged along underneath it. ‘
Such was the speed of the vehicle that when it hit a parked Vauxhall Mokka that car was pushed the length of three houses and spun through 90 degrees. A witness estimated the car was travelling at around 60mph in a 30mph zone.’
Mr Bracchi’s injuries were so severe that doctors considered amputating his left leg.
In a statement to the court he said: ‘I am grateful I survived this incident and I’m here to watch my children grow up.
‘I can only walk very slowly over short distances. I am not very mobile and I have been told I may never make a full recovery. These injuries will affect my ability to play with my four kids.’
In September 2015 Cheetham was banned and fined for driving while disqualified. In March 2016 he was given a nine-month jail sentence, suspended for 24 months, after the BMW pursuit. Judge Simon Bourne-Arton QC activated six months of the suspended sentence when he jailed Cheetham, of Redcar, for a total of 11 years.
He told him: ‘You clearly were hot-headed because if you had given any thought about what you were about to do you would have realised the substantial damage it would cause. You could have caused even greater harm than the horrendous injuries that were caused.’
Cheetham had been charged with attempted murder but pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm with intent.
Paul Abrahams, for Cheetham, said: ‘He had spent the previous day repairing damage on the vehicle. He was upset about that and completely over-reacted.’
‘May never make a full recovery’