Tragedy as young Sheffield couple with “whole future" ahead of them killed after car spins off M1 into tree
Family members described the pair as “one in a billion” and a “fantastic lad”
A young Sheffield couple with “their whole future in front of them” died when their car spun off the M1 into a tree, an inquest heard.
Umar Akbar, aged 23. and his passenger Aiza Nageen, 24 both died at the scene of the November 2025 crash.
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They had been returning from a meal in Leeds at the time when Umar’s BMW drifted across three lanes on a left-hand bend before tipping over on the near side verge and hitting a tree 1,300 metres from junction 36 southbound.
Umar’s BMW X Drive 335d left the carriageway at 11.32pm on November 12 and the pair were pronounced dead around half an hour later by paramedics.
In tributes read to their inquest by family members at Sheffield’s Medico Legal Centre, Aiza was described as “one in a billion” and Umar a “fantastic lad”.
Coroner Hannah Berry heard both were wearing their seatbelts at the point of impact however upon seeing the “extensive” damage a paramedic remarked she thought “any occupants of the vehicle would be deceased”.
A HGV driver who witnessed the car “broadsiding” before “disappearing off into the tree line” said he was driving at 54mph in lane one, when the dark-coloured car overtook him at a “notably” faster speed.
The truck driver pulled over on the hard shoulder and alerted the fire service, police and paramedics.
A paramedic who attended the scene just after midnight said the damage to Umar’s car was “the most extensive I’ve seen to a vehicle involved in an RTC”.
Victoria Brock, a collision investigator, said there was no evidence showing the exact speed the BMW would have been travelling at the time of the crash.
However she was confident it was “well in excess” of the speed limit when it lost control - adding damage to the car was “extreme” and indicated a “high-speed” impact.
While CCTV and dashcam footage showed the car “visually” travelling at speed. Miss Brock said “theoretically” a vehicle could negotiate the bend at 170mph.
She added that wet conditions at the time of the crash and an incorrectly fitted front offside tyre were “contributory” factors. However these merely “compounded” the actions of the driver.
Miss Brock agreed with coroner Hannah Berry, who asked “is it fair to say Umar was not travelling at a speed appropriate for wet conditions?”.
Nursing graduate Aiza, who worked in admin at the time, died of severe head and multiple injuries. Umar died of multiple injuries.
Weeping as she paid tribute in court to her sister, Aisha Nageen said Aiza was “funny, full of life and had a “strong ability to make people laugh”.
She added: “She loved her parents and siblings more than anything. She was someone who could be relied upon. Aiza was one in a billion.”
He said: “These were two young people who had the whole of their lives in front of them and who were looking to build a successful life together.”
Coroner Ms Berry, concluding the case, said: “The BMW was travelling in excess of the speed limit and it’s likely that due to the speed and the road conditions it lost control as it negotiated a left-hand curvature.”
She concluded Aiza and Umar died as a result of a road traffic collision.