The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
A Spalding resident has been jailed after causing the death of a “popular” Cowbit motorcyclist when he overtook in foggy conditions.
Edvinas Maciulevicius (25) was late for his job as an agency driver when he tried to overtake a lorry on the A16 Cowbit bypass.
Lincoln Crown Court heard Maciulevicius was at the wheel of a left-hand drive car, which made the overtaking move more difficult. It collided head-on with a Honda motorbike ridden by Marcel Banom.
Mr Banom (37), who was travelling to his job as a butchery supervisor, died at the scene.
The lorry driver who was travelling in front of Maciulevicius later told police he had clearly seen the light of Mr Banom’s motorbike and did not think it was safe for anybody to overtake him.
Caroline Bradley, prosecuting, told the court although speed was not a factor, the crash happened just before 6am when Maciulevicius was due to start work – but he was still 16 miles away.
Paramedics who attended the scene had chosen not to overtake because of the foggy conditions.
“At the time of the collision the prevailing weather conditions were described as dark and foggy,” Miss Bradley added. “Some witnesses described visibility as between ten and 100 metres. Some said they could see further, but visibility was clearly significantly impaired.”
Mr Banom, of Peak Hill, was described in court as a very popular man, with hundreds of mourners attending his funeral. He had been in the UK for 12 years after moving from Slovakia and was in charge of 66 workers at Dalehead Foods.
In a moving statement read out in court, his partner described him as her “knight in shining armour”. Mr Banom’s sister said he was a “person with a big heart”.
The court heard that Maciulevicius, of Piccard Drive, was uninsured and the car was unlikely to have passed a UK MOT.
He pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving on March 12 last year, and was jailed for two years, banned from driving for five years and will have to take an extended driving test.
Passing sentence, Judge John Pini QC said: “There is a death. That means for the family there is an unimaginable tragedy.”
He told Maciulevicius: “When you pulled out to overtake, it was dark and foggy. The motorcycle was there to be seen.”
