DIABOLICAL DRIVING
GLASGOW DRIVER JAILED FOR 7 YEARS 6 MONTHS FOR KILLING PASSENGER DURING 3-POINT TURN
An Uber driver has been jailed after he killed a passenger while doing a three-point turn and left him for dead at the scene. Kunathilinghan Mohanthas, 48, previously pleaded guilty to killing Christopher Hanton in Glasgow city centre on August 5, 2023. Mr Hanton, 40, had ordered an Uber for pick up at George Street and his driver, Mohanthas, arrived just after 10.30pm. But the driver ordered his passenger out shortly after. Mr Hanton got out but slapped the back of the vehicle as
the car made a three-point turn. The driver made a “sudden turn” to the left when he went to drive away, and struck Mr Hanton who fell and hit his head on the ground. CCTV footage showed how Mr Hanton was hit. Mohanthas drove off from the scene. Tragically, Mr Hanton died from a head injury four days later. Defence lawyer Mr Jackson KC told the court that Mohanthas has accepted “full responsibility” and had shown remorse. Lord Clark when passing sentence
on 13 May, told Mohanthas: “You did not intend to kill him but this was not an accident. “There is no sentence I can pass that can even begin to alleviate the suffering from this terrible event of Mr Hanton’s family members. Mohanthas was sentenced to seven years and six months imprisonment. He was also dis-qualified from driving for 13 years and 9 months and will be required to sit an extended test before being able to drive again.
BLACK CAB DRIVER WHO FLED A FATAL MIDNIGHT HIT AND RUN JAILED FOR FOUR MONTHS
A black cab driver, who fled a midnight hit-and-run and contin- ued picking up passengers in his damaged taxi leaving his victim in the road has been jailed. Farid Cheheb, of Epsom, fatally injured Shane Scannell, 44, who died in hospital four days later. Cheheb, 60, pleaded guilty to failing to stop after a road accident on May 21, 2023. Cheheb was not charged with a more serious offence as a forensic police investigation found no fault with his driving. As he was sentenced to four months imprisonment, and handed an eight month driving ban, Cheheb collapsed in the dock at Staines- upon-Thames Magistrates’ Court, and was eventually taken away in an ambulance after an hour of medical attention in the court. Prosecutor Amanda Burrows told the court on 2 May: “Mr Cheheb was dropping off his passenger in South
PHTM JUNE 2024
Street, Epsom when he collided with Mr Scannell.” Investigating officers ‘considered a number of possible scenarios’, the court was told, eventually conclud- ing it was ‘very unlikely’ the victim had been ‘upright and on two feet’. “Maybe he had fallen and was in the process of getting to his feet when the vehicle collided with the victim and left him with traumatic injuries,” the prosecutor said. Mr Scannell was attended to by the public and taken to hospital. “Police made enquiries and traced the vehicle back to this defendant,” said Ms Burrows. “There was damage to the vehicle consistent with the accident and he was arrested and interviewed. “He said he was aware of the impact and thought he had hit a deer or a fox, but this was not accepted because the visibility should have allowed him to see
what he had collided with.” Cheheb’s hackney carriage licence has been suspended for ten years. His lawyer Suzy Wainscoat said: “Mr Cheheb accepts responsibility and expresses remorse for his actions. “Mr Scannell was not run over. He was at a low level to the ground, that is the police evidence.” District Judge Julie Cooper told Cheheb the circumstances were so serious only an immediate custodial sentence was justified. “The police investigation shows you would have seen Mr Scannell in the road for ten metres. When you knew you had hit something you should have stopped to see what it was. You did not know what you had hit, but it could always be a person. It would take just seconds, but you carried on and picked up two more fares. “This accident left a man dying in the road to the horror of his family.”
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