Truck driver who broke red light and fatally struck pedestrian is jailed

A judge has said there is a greater onus on truck drivers to take care at junctions and look out for cyclists and pedestrians as she jailed a truck driver who broke a red light and fatally struck a pedestrian.

Prince Aibangbe (51) fatally struck 21-year-old Gerard Whyte after pulling off from a stopped position at the crossroads. Aibangbe told gardaí­ that he mistook a pedestrian green light for a filter light to turn left.

Garda David Jordan told Dublin Circuit Criminal Court the victim had been waiting at the other set of pedestrian lights to cross the road in front of the traffic that included Aibangbe's truck.

As he went to cross with his green light Aibangbe also moved forward in response to the other green pedestrian light. The court heard he had stopped his truck at the lights ahead of the traffic markings so was unable to see the victim.

The collision took place at the junction of Swords Road and Collins Avenue in Dublin 9 shortly after midnight on May 31st last year .

Aibangbe, of Williams Way, Ongar Village, Dublin, pleaded guilty last January to dangerous driving causing the death of Mr Whyte. Details of the case were heard last week, when Judge Pauline Codd adjourned it for finalisation on Wednesday.

In her sentencing comments, Judge Codd said the collision would not have happened if Aibangbe had observed the appropriate markings and distance from the traffic lights.

She accepted that he did not believe he had hit somebody but noted he pulled the truck in after hearing a bang. He told gardaí­ that he drove off again after deciding he must have hit a kerb.

Judge Codd that a custodial sentence was required as “a general deterrence to drivers of large vehicles” to take care at junctions and lights. She said such drivers have a greater duty to observe all lights and look out for pedestrians and cyclists.

“They should take care that all is safe and well before driving off,” she said.

In a forensic collision report Sergeant Paul Carney outlined that Aibangbe had stopped past the white stop lines at the junction before the pedestrian crossing. He said Mr Whyte was available to be seen by Aibangbe in direct vision if he had stopped at the correct stop line.

He said Mr Whyte was also available to be seen to Aibangbe if the driver had performed his mirror checks. Other drivers who witnessed the collision said that Aibangbe had broken the red light when he pulled off.

Judge Codd set an initial headline sentence of four years for what she said was “a grossly negligent manoeuvre”.

She then noted the mitigation factors of Aibangbe’s work record, his genuine remorse and stress at the effects of his actions, his co-operation with the investigation. She noted his guilty plea meant a trial could be avoided.

Antonia Boyle BL, prosecuting, told the court that it was not the State’s case that Aibangbe left the scene knowing he had hit someone and Judge Codd noted Aibangbe was shocked when told the next day about the fatality.

Judge Codd said sentences must be proportionate to the degree of culpability and noted that in cases where there is a death, “even the longest sentence will end at some point, whereas the suffering for families continues”.

She said the appropriate sentence was three years and she suspended the final two years of this. She disqualified him from driving for six years.

Judge Codd said this was “a very serious and very sad case” and expressed her “deepest condolences” to the Whyte family “in their enormous loss”.

James Dwyer SC, defending, had earlier submitted that this disqualification would have the “collateral effect” of ending his client’s long career and livelihood and effect his ability to support his family.

Aibangbe has nine previous convictions including four for road traffic offences. He was in court the week earlier for driving without insurance and failing to display an NCT.

He was fined €400 for those offences and the judge exercised his discretion not to disqualify him from driving on that occasion.

Mr Dwyer said Aibangbe, a father of eight, had come to Ireland in the mid 2000s and has been working as a truck driver for 31 years, both in Ireland and his native Nigeria. Testimonials were handed in from his current and past employers.

Aibangbe wrote a letter to the court outlining his “sincere remorse” for his actions and extended a formal apology to the Whyte family. He said he accepted full responsibility and pleaded with the family to forgive him.

The court heard Aibangbe’s employer described him as going very quiet and probably being in shock when it was put to him that he might have killed someone. He put up no resistance when his employer rang gardaí.

Aibangbe later told gardaí­ that if he had thought he had hit somebody he would not have driven on.

He said he thought he had a green light to go left. After gardaí­ showed him footage of the collision from the dash cam of the bus Aibangbe accepted that he had driven through a red light.

“It wasn’t the correct light, Jesus Christ,” he said.

Heartbroken family

At a sentence hearing last week the family of Mr Whyte told Judge Codd: “Our life sentence started on May 31st, 2019 and will last for the rest of our lives.”

His parents, Julie and Gerard, described in their victim impact statement how Gerard, a Liverpool supporter, was a beloved son, brother and grandson with a wide network of friends.

They told the court that they received the news of the tragedy after arriving in Portugal to attend a wedding. They described how Gerard had hugged them goodbye the previous night.

“We had no idea it would be the last hug and last I love you and the last time we would hear our son’s voice,” they said. The statement outlined how they were heartbroken by the horrific, cruel and senseless way their son’s life had been taken.

Gerard’s sister Emma told the court she was a student in Australia when she received the call from her parents to tell her of her only brother’s passing. She had to take a 22-hour journey home alone.

She said it was awful her parents’ hearts were as broken as hers and she could do nothing to fix it for them. “Will we ever be able to listen to ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ again without sobbing,” she asked.