A hit-and-run motorist who killed a man who had been left barefoot in the street by police three miles from his home has been jailed for nine years.
Officers attended the home of father-of-six Gareth Roper, 35, in the early hours of New Year’s Day 2022 after his wife reported he was ‘acting in a strange manner’.
The hit
Mr Roper was taken away to ‘prevent any further difficulties’ but was de-arrested nine minutes later and left outside the Iceland store in Platt Bridge, Wigan, without any money or his mobile phone, Bolton Crown Court heard.
Twenty-four minutes later Mr Roper was struck by a Volvo V60 driven by Jamie Evans, 30, as he walked along the centre of the single carriageway in Lily Lane, Bamfurlong.
He was later pronounced dead at the scene with head injuries.
The police officers who left Mr Roper are under investigation for the offence of gross negligence manslaughter, the court heard.
Don’t drive when you drink
Unlicenced Evans, who had been drinking strong lager and spirits, was speeding at 55mph in a 30mph zone and drove off before he later handed himself in to police later that day.
Two taxi drivers had earlier managed to spot Mr Roper, wearing dark clothing, walking in the middle of the road and had slowed down to manoeuvre around him.
Road collision experts concluded the risk of death at the approach speed of 55 mph was 86 per cent while the risk of death had Mr Roper been struck at 30mph would have been just 7 per cent.
Evans was released on bail after his arrest in January 2022 but four months later got behind the wheel again and sped away in a van from a pursuing police vehicle, the court was told.
READ ALSO: Dad, 24, dies after clothes get CAUGHT ON conveyor belt, dragging him into machine and impaling him
Evans, of no fixed address, was subsequently jailed for 26 weeks after he was convicted of dangerous driving, having no licence and failing to provide a specimen of breath.
Driving ban
Sentencing on last week Tuesday, Recorder Nicholas Clarke KC told the defendant: ‘Frankly I find it utterly remarkable that having killed somebody on the 1st of January and knowing that you were under investigation for that you should continue to drive and drive dangerously still while not having any insurance or any driving licence.
‘You clearly think that the laws of the road do not apply to you.’
‘It is clear Mr Roper placed himself in a vulnerable situation by walking along the centre of a road.
However, if you had been travelling at or below the speed limit, the collision would have occurred at a much lower speed.’
Evans, who pleaded guilty earlier this year to causing the death of Mr Roper by dangerous driving, also receiving a 14-year driving ban.
