Father and Son Sentenced to Over 30 Years Combined for Fatal Drink-Driving Ramming
A drink-driver and his passenger father have been handed substantial prison sentences for the manslaughter of their four-year-old cousin and for inflicting life-changing injuries on the boy's father in a deliberate high-speed collision. Owen Maughan, 27, and Patrick Maughan, 54, both of Hill Rise in Darenth, Kent, were sentenced at Maidstone Crown Court on Wednesday to 18 years and more than 12 years respectively.
The Tragic Incident on the A2
The fatal crash occurred on the A2 in Kent just before 9:30pm on June 1 last year. Peter Maughan, aged four, suffered severe and devastating injuries to his head, chest, and abdomen after being thrown from a Ford Ranger Wildtrak pick-up truck. He died at the scene from what were described as unsurvivable injuries, some bearing characteristics reminiscent of tyre tread marks.
His father, Lovell Mahon, who was driving the family car, was also ejected from the vehicle. He sustained multiple fractures and brain trauma, leaving him in a wheelchair and unlikely to walk again. Miraculously, Peter's mother Hayley Maughan and his one-year-old sister Annarica escaped with minor injuries.
A Drink-Fuelled Pursuit
The court heard that Owen and Patrick Maughan had consumed approximately 25 bottles and pints of lager between them during a six-hour drinking session in Rochester before the incident. Footage released by the Crown Prosecution Service shows the father and son chasing down the car containing Peter, his parents, and his sister in what was described as a state of 'fury'.
Judge Oliver Saxby KC told the court that lives had been 'irretrievably shattered by what you did' in 'selfish' anger. He addressed Owen Maughan directly: 'You were angry he had not stopped and wanted to teach him a lesson. This was no "nudge" as you claimed in evidence. You were never going to stop, you didn't care what happened to Lovell Mahon and his family.'
The Fatal Collision and Aftermath
During the three-week trial, jurors heard that Owen Maughan pulled onto the wrong side of the road and rammed the rear offside of Mr Mahon's truck with the front nearside of his vehicle. The impact caused the family's vehicle to rotate out of control and roll up to three times.
Instead of stopping to help, the defendants sped away from what the prosecution called 'the carnage they had created', driving through debris with a child's pushchair that had fallen from the rammed truck wedged under their chassis. They stopped briefly so Patrick Maughan could rip off the front number plate in what was alleged to be an attempt to cover their tracks before abandoning their visibly damaged vehicle in Hextable.
Victim Impact Statements
In a heartbreaking victim impact statement read to the court, Hayley Maughan described how her family had the 'best life' before the incident but now they are merely 'surviving, not living'. She described Peter as her 'other half' and a 'happy boy' who never got to start his life properly.
'Peter didn't get to start his life,' the 24-year-old mother said. 'He didn't get to go to school on a school trip. He didn't even get to learn to read. Peter made me who I was, I had him when I was 18 and now he's gone I'm nothing.' She revealed that on the day of the 'horror', Peter's packed lunch for school the next day was ready in the fridge and his shoes were by the door.
Lovell Mahon's statement described how difficult it is living each day without his son and in a wheelchair. 'Life will never be the same,' he said. 'The death of Peter has broken me, he was too good for this world. When I found out he was gone words can't even describe it.'
Trial Details and Sentencing
The pair were cleared of murder after a trial last month but convicted of manslaughter. Owen Maughan had previously pleaded guilty to Peter's manslaughter, while the jury convicted Patrick Maughan. The court heard that Patrick Maughan had actively encouraged his son during the pursuit, with Hayley Maughan describing him as being red in the face and 'revving up' his son 'like a volcano ready to explode'.
Evidence presented at trial included video and audio recordings made by Hayley Maughan on her phone, capturing about six minutes of the family being 'harassed and terrified' along the A2 from Cobham until the Pepperhill junction at Northfleet. Lorry dashcam footage also captured approximately three minutes of the chase, showing the vehicles changing lanes, braking heavily, and pulling up alongside each other.
Judge Saxby noted that Owen Maughan had told a number of lies in his evidence, particularly regarding whether he knew there were children in the other vehicle. The judge stated unequivocally: 'He had.'
The families had not spoken for years, and while there was no ongoing feud, a disagreement between Hayley Maughan and Owen's sister Nicole Maughan at school gates a few weeks earlier had reportedly been resolved. The reason for trouble to erupt within the space of six minutes that evening remained unclear to the court.
Both defendants were arrested within two days of the incident. Owen, a builder with no previous convictions, fled to Manchester but returned to Kent to hand himself in to police on June 2. Patrick was detained on June 3 after officers found him in bed, heavily intoxicated.
