A 28-year-old man who fled the scene and left a motorist to die following a collision on the M62 near Warrington has been jailed.
Shaun Tinsley appeared at Liverpool Crown Court yesterday, Wednesday 7 June, where he was sentenced to 14 years reduced to 9 years 4 months for his early guilty plea and he will serve a minimum of 6 years 2 months before being considered for release from prison.
Tinsley of Deysbrook Way, Liverpool, had pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving, causing death by driving while uninsured and causing death by driving while disqualified as well as failing to stop and failing to report the collision.
On top of his prison sentence he was also banned from driving for 5 years upon release and will be required to take an extended re-test.
The court heard how at around 3.40am on Saturday 29 April, Tinsley was driving a grey Mercedes which collided with a silver Skoda Fabia on the eastbound carriageway near to junction 10, the Croft Interchange.
The driver of the Skoda, a 61-year-old man from the Wirral, sustained serious injuries as a result of the collision.
However, rather than stop and help the driver, Tinsley chose to flee the scene and made off on foot.
The other driver was subsequently taken to Warrington District General Hospital but sadly, his injuries proved fatal.
Following the incident, a manhunt was launched by Cheshire Police and Tinsley was located hiding at a hotel on Friday 5th May.
Following his sentencing, Sergeant Russell Sime of the Serious and Complex Collision Investigation Unit at Cheshire Police, said: “Tinsley’s selfish and cowardly actions resulted in the death of an innocent man, and I welcome the sentence that has been handed to him.
“He caused this crash, but rather than stop at the scene to help the other driver and face the consequences of his actions, he chose to flee. He then went into hiding in an attempt to evade justice.
“Thankfully as result of our investigation he has now been held accountable for his actions. I hope in some way the sentence that has been passed down by the courts to Tinsley will help bring some comfort to the victim’s family.
“Our thoughts remain firmly with them as they will continue to deal with the devastating outcome of this heart-breaking incident every day.”
