Former firefighter said 'oh God, I didn't seen him' after pulling out into path of motorcyclist

Wales Online

14-07-2025

Former firefighter said 'oh God, I didn't seen him' after pulling out into path of motorcyclist
The biker suffered a bleed on the brain, a broken pelvis, and fractured wrists, and said he had been left living in constant pain
The crash happened on the A477 Red Roses bypass
(Image: Google )
A well-respected former fireman caused a biker horrific injuries when he pulled out onto a main road straight into the path of an oncoming motorcycle, a court has heard. The biker was thrown from his machine in the crash and suffered a catalogue of injuries including a broken hip and fractured wrists.
Dean John's barrister told Swansea Crown Court his client was "devastated" at the injuries he had caused and at the life-long consequences of his "momentary lapse" behind the wheel.
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Regan Walters, prosecuting, told the court that on the evening of August 25 last year the complainant set off from his home in Reading to ride to Pembroke Dock to catch a ferry to Ireland.
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He said the biker stopped at the M4 Cardiff West services on the way before continuing to west Wales where he picked up the A477. However, the barrister said the motorcyclist could remember nothing after that point.
The court heard that just after midnight the defendant pulled out of a minor road onto the A477 near Red Roses and drove into the path of the oncoming biker, with the motorcycle colliding with the driver's side of John's Kia Niro car.
The rider was thrown from his machine and ended up lying in the carriageway. For all the latest court stories sign up to out crime newsletter
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The court heard that other drivers arrived on the scene shortly after the incident and found John standing over the casualty while on the phone to the emergency services.
The defendant was heard to say: "Oh God, I didn't seen him". One motorist who stopped noted the biker to be slipping in and out of consciousness.
Police and paramedics were soon on the scene and the injured man was taken first to Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen and then to the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff where he was found to have injuries including a small bleed on the brain, a fractured pelvis, and fractured wrists and dislocated wrists.
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The casualty spent more than a week in hospital, required multiple surgical interventions, and at one stage needed an emergency blood transfusion.
Meanwhile, John had been interviewed by police and gave a prepared statement in which he said he had seen the oncoming headlight but thought it was safe to pull out. In the statement he also offered his apologies.
The court heard the road and weather conditions at the time of the crash were dry, and that the section of the A477 in question did not have street lighting.
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A police investigation concluded that the cause of the crash was the defendant's failure to judge the speed and path of the bike correctly, and his failure to look properly.
In an impact statement read to the court by the prosecutor, the biker said the collision had changed his whole life "dramatically". He said he was in constant pain and was unable to do anything for himself, and he said his partner had now become his carer.
He said he required a walking stick or a wheelchair to get about, and added: "Emotionally I do not feel like myself - my dignity has been taken away". The biker said he was receiving ongoing physiotherapy and counselling, and had been told he would require a hip replacement.
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Dean John, aged 55, of Rhyd-y-Gors, St Clears, Carmarthenshire, had previously pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by careless driving when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has no previous convictions.
David Singh, for John, said the defendant was "devastated" at what happened and at the life-changing injuries he had caused by what must have been a "momentary lapse" behind the wheel. He said that though his client had encountered many similar circumstances during his career, this incident had significantly impacted him.
Judge Paul Thomas KC said John's "uncharacteristic error of judgement" had caused the victim multiple and life-changing injuries which led to a "complete overturning" of the biker's day-to-day life.
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He said it was clear from what he had read that John had been well-regarded as a firefighter and he had demonstrated his public-spiritedness by volunteering to assist with the aftermath of the tsunami in Japan.
The judge said that in all the circumstances there was "no good purpose" in sending the defendant to prison.
With a discount for his guilty plea John was sentenced to 16 weeks in prison suspended for 12 months, and he was ordered to complete 120 hours of unpaid work in the community.
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