Ex-footballer jailed for M56 deaths

A FORMER footballer has been jailed for five years after he killed a couple in a motorway crash.

Former Barnsley FC footballer Steven Bennett was distracted whilst on his phone when he drove his 10-ton lorry into the back of a car containing Richard and Angela Wong, from Northenden, Manchester. They were returning from a holiday in Wales to celebrate their retirement.

29-year-old Bennett, who played a handful of games for Barnsley FC, collided with a stationary queue of eight vehicles on the M56 near Warrington, Cheshire, on Sept 19 2019, whilst driving at approximately 54mph. The Toyota Avensis driven by 56-year-old Mrs Wong was shunted into the other vehicles in the queue, injuring five more people. She was pronounced dead at the scene while her husband, aged 62, died three days later.

Prosecutors said that Bennett of Grimethorpe, Barnsley, initially told police he had been distracted by a bird flying past, however, examination of his phone showed that he had been handling it and had plugged and unplugged the charger twice.

Bennett pleaded guilty to two counts of causing death by dangerous driving and was sentenced at Chester Crown Court. He was also banned from driving for four years and ordered to undertake an extended retest.

Sgt Andrew Dennison, of Cheshire Police, said: "This collision could have been easily been avoided, Bennett had a clear view of the traffic ahead of him at least 20 seconds before he hit the stationary traffic."

The Wongs, who had a son, daughter and two grandchildren, were described as a "devoted couple" who had been married for 37 years and "touched the hearts and enriched the lives of everyone who knew them". Their daughter Charlotte told the court: "I am a different person to the one I was before the day my parents were ripped from my life, my heart and my future. To quantify their loss is like trying to quantify the size of a black hole. It is endless and bleak. The pain I feel every day is like carrying a weight that never eases."

The Johnson Partnership

Nottingham Solicitors