Jail for Micklefield courier who fatally hit cyclist at 97mph

BBC News

02-07-2025

A courier who admitted causing the death of a cyclist by dangerous driving and then setting his car on fire to destroy evidence has been jailed.Keiran Hunt, 37, was driving at almost 100mph (161 km/h) on Ridge Road in Micklefield, Leeds, on 28 April when his car hit John Shelton's bike, throwing him in the air. Mr Shelton, 48, from Astley, Greater Manchester, died at the scene.Hunt, of Field View, Micklefield, then left the scene and drove to Chapeltown, where he arranged for the car to be burned out. At Leeds Crown Court on Wednesday, Hunt was sentenced to 13 years in jail after previously admitting causing death by dangerous driving and perverting the course of justice.
Judge Andrew Menary KC was told that Hunt had previous convictions for 24 offences, including dangerous driving, perverting the course of justice and the supply of drugs.
Catastrophic injuries
The court had earlier heard that on the day of the crash, Mr Shelton, who worked for Balfour Beatty, had borrowed a mountain bike so he could test the range of a walkie talkie with colleagues. He was wearing a headset, was cycling on the correct side of the road, and was wearing hi-vis trousers and a blue t-shirt so he could be easily seen, the court was told.However, as Mr Shelton was returning to the construction site, he had been struck by a white VW Golf being driven by Hunt at a speed estimated by investigators to be 97mph (156 km/h). Mr Shelton died after having suffered catastrophic injuries.The court heard that Hunt was later identified as the driver of the Golf and was subsequently arrested and charged. A tracker fitted to his car by his employer had confirmed Hunt had been at the scene in Micklefield, as well as in Chapeltown, where his car was found burned out.
At the sentencing hearing, Mr Shelton's wife, Lucy Masters, told the court that her life without him was "broken beyond repair".She spoke about how telling their five-year-old son that "Daddy has died and he's not coming home" had made her feel "physically sick". "It changed our son's life forever," she said. Mrs Masters said her husband died shortly before their son's sixth birthday, and he had already bought him presents to open on the day."John and I had years of trying for a baby and IVF finally gave us our boy in 2019," she explained."For the past five years, he did everything to be the best dad he could be."We fought so hard for this family, and for this to be taken away from him is just cruel."
'Devastating loss'
In mitigation, Hunt's defence barrister said his client had expressed "genuine remorse" and had written a personal letter of apology to Mr Shelton's family.He told the court: "The defence recognises that he will receive a significant sentence. "He wishes to apologise for his actions to Mr Shelton's family and friends, but knows any apology may appear hollow and provide little comfort to those who have lost a husband, a brother, a father, an uncle and a close friend."After Hunt was sentenced, Det Insp Paul Conroy, from West Yorkshire Police, said: "This was a truly devastating incident that left John's family with the devastating loss of a loved one."While the sentencing today does not bring John back, our investigation has resulted in the man responsible for his death now serving time in prison."Hunt's actions on that day cannot be reversed. He left the scene, leaving John with injuries that were not survivable. "He then attempted to destroy the car and evidence of what had happened."Det Insp Conroy said he hoped Hunt's sentence "serves as a reminder that the repercussions of speeding can be much worse than a fine or points on your licence"."You can take away someone's life in a matter of minutes," he said.
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