2 days ago
Man sentenced after pregnant care home worker lost unborn baby after hit-and-run in Bamber Bridge
A man has been sentenced after a woman's unborn baby was killed in a hit-and-run collision.
Renju Joseph, 31, was five and a half months pregnant when she was struck by a car travelling at high speed by Ashir Shahid, 20, as she walked on a pedestrian crossing in the village of Bamber Bridge in Lancashire.
The Toyota Prius was estimated to be travelling at between 58mph and 71mph in wet conditions in a 30mph zone, Preston Crown Court heard.
Mrs Joseph was rushed to hospital from the scene in Station Road in the early evening of 29 September for treatment to head and spinal injuries.
While she underwent emergency surgery to have her baby boy delivered, he tragically later died in hospital.
An investigation was launched by Lancashire's Force Major Investigation Team alongside the Serious Collision Investigation Unit, and it was quickly established that the offending vehicle was a Toyota Prius which drove to Greater Manchester after the collision where it was dumped in Farnworth.
CCTV and other enquiries led Lancashire Police to driver Ashir Shahid, 20, of Windsor Road, Walton le Dale, who was arrested and charged.
In June, he pleaded guilty to causing the death of a baby by dangerous driving. He also pleaded guilty to causing serious injury to Mrs Joseph.
On Friday 15 August, Shahid was sentenced to Preston Crown Court to 13 years detention for the offence of Causing Death by Dangerous Driving and 3 years for Causing Serious Injury by Dangerous Driving to be served concurrently, with a minimum of two thirds to be served before being released on licence.
He was also issued a Driving Disqualification for 15 years and 1 month, which results in a period of around 7 years post his release.
A 17-year-old boy, from Walton le Dale, pleaded guilty to assisting an offender. Before today he couldn't be named for legal reasons, but these restrictions were lifted at the sentencing hearing by HH Judge Unsworth.
Sam Shahid, also of Windsor Road, was sentenced to three years detention.
In a victim personal statement Mrs Joseph said: 'Everything has changed for me now. Everything has been ruined by that one night and the callous and reckless actions of those two people in that car.
"My life will never be the same again. I will never get to meet my baby, be a mummy to him or watch him grow up. They have taken my first child away from me and I will never get him back.
'I don't know how I will ever move on from the events of that night. I will always be reminded of what happened by the fact that my child is not here anymore and he should be. I have physical scars, but the emotional scars are the worst. There is not a day I do not think about my baby boy.'
Det Chief Insp Andy Fallows, of our Force Major Investigation Team, said: 'My thoughts first and foremost today are with Renju and family. They have been through the most appalling ordeal and my heart goes out to them. They have shown the most incredible dignity and courage since this tragic collision and throughout these proceedings.
'In contrast Ashir Shahid and his co-defendant have shown nothing but arrogance and a lack of remorse for what they have done. Not only did they fail to stop after the collision, but they did all they could to try and escape detection.
'The manner of Shahid's driving on that tragic evening was truly appalling with a complete disregard for pedestrians and other road users and his dangerous actions have very sadly cost the life of a little boy and left his mother with some serious and life changing physical injuries and the unimaginable pain of losing a child.
'I hope that today's sentences will give these two defendants some time to reflect on the devastating impact of what they have done and will give others who may be tempted to drive in this way pause for thought and to think twice before they get behind the wheel.
'I would like to thank the officers and staff who worked tirelessly on this investigation to secure these convictions and sentences, as well as the Crown Prosecution Service and colleagues from Greater Manchester Police who helped locate the offending car.
'Finally, I would like to return to Renju and family and to once again extend my sympathies to them and to offer them my best wishes for the future.'
