Note: This article contains video footage some may find upsetting
A 30-YEAR-OLD lorry driver has been sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for killing four members of the same family in a road accident after becoming distracted by the music on his phone.
Tomasz Kroker, of Andover, Hampshire, had pleaded guilty to four counts of causing death by dangerous driving earlier this month.
Kroker had been driving a lorry and was changing the music on his phone when he smashed into a stationary line of traffic on the A34 road near Newbury in Berkshire, England, at about 5pm on the 10 August.
He had been distracted from the road for nearly a minute and had covered one kilometre in his vehicle, as evidenced by the two dashcams in the truck – one facing the road and the other facing Kroker.
Speaking outside court, Aimee Goldsmith’s mother Kate made a highly emotional statement about the loss her family has suffered:
“Today Tomasz Kroker has been sentenced for killing much-loved members of our family,” she said.
However, in our eyes the sentence does not do justice to the crimes committed.
Mr Kroker made the decision to change the music on his phone while driving a lorry at 50 mph.
A sentence of 10 years in prison will not ease our pain and suffering, nor will it send a strong enough message to those who lack the self-restraint to not use their mobile phones while driving.
Today’s outcome must serve as a reminder to us all of our responsibilities every time we drive, and that the decisions we make can be fatal. Our children lost their lives because of the reckless actions of Tomasz Kroker, but we are not the only family to have suffered due to what is perceived by many as a minor and inconsequential crime, a crime that takes place on our roads every day.
We urge you to make a personal commitment not to use a mobile phone while driving, and make our roads safer for everyone.
Collision
45-year-old Tracy Houghton, her two sons Josh (11) and Ethan (13), and her step-daughter Aimee Goldsmith (11) all died almost instantly in the impact.
Five further people were injured in the collision, while Aimee’s father and brother were in the car directly behind that in which their family members died.
When the truck hit them the car driven by Tracy Houghton was forced beneath a stationary lorry and crushed to one third of its normal size.
Footage shown in court today showed Kroker’s look of horror just before the impact between his lorry and the stationary vehicles.
“This was not just a tragic accident, but a death caused by Kroker’s inattention and distraction,” said Gavin Hernandez, district crown prosecutor for Thames and Chiltern Crown Prosecution Service.
The slow-moving vehicles were clearly visible to Kroker for a considerable time, and the three lorries were stationary for 16 seconds prior to the collision, but Kroker was oblivious to the approaching danger.
Kroker had initially claimed that his brakes had failed, but changed his story when confronted with the dashcam footage from his truck.
“It is unimaginable to think of the emotional impact that this incident will have on the man and teenage boy, who witnessed, at close range, the deaths of four members of their own family,” Hernandez added.
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