Mehmet Celik, 24, has been handed an 18-month suspended sentence after ploughing his Kia into his best friend Thomas Rees, 23, while speeding on a 20mph road in Swansea, south Wales. The incident, described in court as a "misguided attempt to show off," left Mr Rees with a brain injury, a blood clot to his lungs, a broken breast bone, and a fractured calf bone.
Night Out Ends in Tragedy
Mr Rees had been on a night out in Swansea when he messaged Celik asking for a lift home shortly after 1am. Celik, who had been asked to pick up his friend, sped past their meeting point and used a wide junction to turn around. However, as Mr Rees crossed the road to get into the passenger side, Celik struck him. The impact was so violent that Mr Rees's shoes were knocked off.
Prosecutor Ryan Bowen told Swansea Crown Court that Celik "sped past" the meeting point and then carried out the manoeuvre as "something of a game." A police report found Celik was travelling at 36mph on the wrong side of the carriageway on the 20mph road. The crash left the front windscreen smashed, the bonnet heavily dented, and headlights broken.
Lifelong Friendship Shattered
The court heard that the pair were lifelong friends, having attended school and university together. In a victim impact statement, Mr Rees's recovery was described as "prolonged and deeply upsetting," with his life now "shaped by his limitations." Passersby rushed to help, including Celik, who was described as "hysterical" at the scene, before Mr Rees was airlifted to hospital.
Celik admitted causing serious injury by dangerous driving. David Singh, defending, said: "This was an appalling lack of judgement by the defendant. There has always been a correlation between young men and demonstrations of bravado and driving in a certain manner. Fortunately the consequences were not fatal. He has lost his friendship through a moment of utter madness."
Judge Condemns Reckless Behaviour
Judge Geraint Walters said: "This is a case of two young men, mates at school, who shared a room at university together, and one ends up maiming the other in a moment of complete and utter, on the face of it, madness. When you arrived in Mumbles, you entered a 20mph zone, much lamented by many, and drove at a plainly excessive speed in wet conditions and, as something of a game, on the wrong side of the road. Your friend was mowed down by you, and the whole thing is captured on CCTV. When will young people learn the road is not a playground?"
Judge Walters added: "Since the time of the incident, you have been able to move on with your life, unlike your victim, running your own business in Swansea. Your victim isn't as lucky, and still bears the scars of what you did."
Sentence and Driving Ban
Celik was handed an 18-month suspended sentence, a four-month nightly curfew, and ordered to carry out 300 hours of unpaid work. He was also banned from driving for two years.
