A disqualified driver who caused the death of a great-grandfather by plowing into the garden where he was working and striking him with a stolen Maserati has been sentenced to more than 13 years in prison. John Bell, 74, sustained “non-survivable injuries” when he was hit by the vehicle and pinned against the wall of a house in Broughty Ferry near Dundee on April 13 this year.
Sentence handed down at High Court
Fraser Garden, 55, admitted causing Mr Bell's death by dangerous driving at a hearing at the High Court in Edinburgh last month. He also pleaded guilty to theft of a motor vehicle, driving without insurance, driving while disqualified, and failing to provide a blood sample for drug testing.
Garden was handed a sentence of 13 years and six months when he appeared before the court for sentencing on Friday. Lord Baird, who also banned Garden from getting behind the wheel for more than 56 years, stated that his offending was of the “utmost severity”.
He said: “From the moment you drove away from the garage, you demonstrated wicked disregard for the lives of others. No sentence this court can impose can possibly hope to make up for the loss Mr Bell's family and friends have suffered.”
Crash details revealed in court
The court had previously heard that Garden entered a car showroom in Broughty Ferry during the early afternoon of April 13 and stole a high-powered Maserati from the forecourt. He subsequently drove the vehicle at speeds exceeding 80mph through a residential area of the town, nearly three times the 30mph speed limit, reports the Daily Record.
Garden also ran a red light, travelled on the wrong side of the carriageway, and overtook cars into oncoming traffic. He lost control at a bend near the junction of Forthill Road and Nursery Road, less than 750 metres from the showroom. He clipped a kerb, hit a traffic island and then crashed through a hedge into a garden where Mr Bell was carrying out work for a neighbour. The front of the vehicle struck the former taxi driver before trapping him against the house wall.
Victim’s family and offender’s background
At the hearing last month, prosecutor Graeme Jessop KC told the court Garden had been travelling at 85mph just 3.3 seconds before the collision. When the car hit the house it was still doing 34mph. Mr Jessop said when police arrested Garden on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving, he said: “Sorry.”
Garden had 90 previous convictions including “numerous” motoring offences, and had been under three separate disqualifications from driving on the day of the incident, Mr Jessop said. The court heard Mr Bell had three children, 10 adult grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. Mr Jessop told the court that on the day of the incident, Garden had spotted the unlocked Maserati while wandering around West End Garage. The vehicle belonged to the garage's director. Mr Jessop said the 523-brake horsepower car could accelerate from 0-60mph in 4.6 seconds and had a top speed of 193mph.
