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Polish trucker killed dad while driving on wrong side of the road
A POLISH trucker has been jailed for killing a Sheffield van driver – by forgetting he should have been on the left hand side of the road.
Jerzy Derak's lorry had been on the wrong side of the A57 Snake Pass for 600 yards when it crashed head-on into a van being driven on the correct side by electrical inspector Ian Murray.
Ian, aged 53, of Westwick Crescent, Greenhill, had been working at a nature reserve, fitting outside lights, and was heading home in the early afternoon. He died shortly after the crash near Glossop on November 4.
Derak, 48, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving, and was jailed for 20 months and banned from driving for four years.
Sonal Ahya, defending, told Derby Crown Court: "He drove as if he was in Europe and a collision occurred, with tragic consequences."
Judge Robert Brown told Derak: "You drove on the wrong side for some hundreds of yards, forgetting you were in the UK and not on continental Europe.
"You went round a right hand bend. It was plain and inevitable if a vehicle came in the other direction there would be a head-on collision.
"You were driving a large vehicle which poses a very real risk to other road users. The accident was inevitable as soon as Mr Murray's van came round the corner."
Ian had been married for 25 years to Jayne, 46, a food technology and textiles teacher at King Edward VII School in Broomhill. Their 19-year-old daughter Camilla works as a technician at the same school.
Jayne told The Star her husband was a "real family man" and "one of those people everybody liked, very easy going, such a nice bloke".
The court heard Derak was also "a decent family man" in Poland, with three children.
The judge told him: "I can accept you are able to empathise with the loss felt by Mrs Murray and her family."
The court heard as soon as the crash happened Derak got out of his vehicle and tried to help Ian. He stayed at the scene, stopped a passer-by to ask them to call an ambulance, and helped to put out a fire caused by the smash.
Ms Ahya said: "He has to live with what he has done for the rest of his life. His distress is apparent and his remorse is genuine. He has been driving for years and his record is impeccable."
After seeing Derak sentenced, Jayne said the tragedy had left "a massive hole" in her family. She added: "Christmas is going to be awful. We have lost a husband and father. Camilla and I will both get out as much as possible and try to think about something else."
She said Ian, a keen cyclist, was a member of Rutland Cycling Club for over 30 years and the club is planning to hold an annual testimonial race with a trophy in her husband's name.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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