Phone-using driver found guilty of mowing down and killing pensioner on Wakefield road

Van driver Qabir Hussain had been checking an email and failed to see 85-year-old David Brooke crossing Barnsley Road in Wakefield.

The elderly man was thrown into the air after his head smashed against the VW Caddy’s windscreen. He died at the scene.

Hussain, 54, denied he was on his phone and a charge of causing death by dangerous driving, but following a trial at Leeds Crown Court was unanimously found guilty by a jury.

They deliberated for just 70 minutes before returning a guilty verdict.

Hussain, of Manygates Lane, Wakefield, was told by Judge Mushtaq Khokhar that probation reports were required and he will be sentenced on October 21.

He was given bail, but was warned he faces custody.

During the three-day trial, it was heard that Mr Brooke had stepped out onto Barnsley Road at the pedestrian crossing near Tesco at around 11am on the morning of January 17, 2022.

Hussain’s VW Caddy van was found to be travelling “moderately” over the speed limit, but the traffic lights were on green.

Following the collision, Hussain stopped immediately and dialled 999.

Ambulance staff tried to save Mr Brooke and the air ambulance was scrambled, but he had suffered catastrophic head injuries and went into cardiac arrest. He died at the scene.

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Hussain later told police he had been dazzled by the sun and did not see Mr Brooke, but was told the sun was behind him that day.

An analysis of his phone revealed he had checked an email 35 seconds before calling 999, suggesting he was on his phone at the time of the collision.

Giving evidence during the trial, Hussain claimed he had stopped further down the road to look at his email, before setting off again, but was not believed by the jury.