A12 crash which killed Colchester dad sees young man jailed

Nicholas Sparkes, of Blickling Close, Ipswich, had been returning from a night out in Latchingdon, Maldon, and was driving in a Volkswagen Golf on the A12 towards Ipswich at 4.40am on Saturday, September 3 of last year. At the same time, 46-year-old Marcin Zabicki was travelling on his motorbike between Marks Tey and Stanway, having earlier finished a shift at an Aldi warehouse in Chelmsford. The court heard how he had been on his way to an ex-partners address so he could look after his young daughter.

Missed – Marcin Zabicki had been driving back to Colchester to look after his young daughter, having recently finished a shift at a warehouse in Chelmsford (Image: Essex Police) Sparkes, who was calculated to have had 92 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath at the time of the incident, failed to respond in time when Mr Zabicki braked suddenly. The court heard how the 46-year-old would have been catapulted over the roof of Sharpes’s car; but instead of stopping at the scene, Sparkes panicked and drove on, despite his bonnet being propped up and obscuring his view.

Whilst Sparkes continued on the A12, Mr Zabicki lay prone on the road and was hit by at least one other vehicle. Sparkes then pulled in at a BP filling station near the Colchester United football stadium, with paramedics having stopped at the garage to refuel. Dangerous – Nicholas Sparkes was more than twice the legal alcohol limit when the collision took place in September last year (Image: National Highways)

When paramedics were told what had happened by a lorry driver who had followed Sparkes to the garage, the police were called. As Sparkes was taken to hospital, he asked officers, “How long am I looking at, realistically?” Sparkes appeared at Chelmsford Crown Court for sentencing on Friday morning after admitting charges of causing death by careless driving whilst over the prescribed limit, and dangerous driving.

Judge Christopher Morgan said Sparkes showed remorse when he entered his guilty pleas at an earlier hearing, but said the incident could not have been the result of “a momentary inattention”.

Sparkes was sentenced to a total term of five years and four months and has been disqualified from driving for seven years and eight months.

The 27-year-old, who was dressed in a shirt and tie, acknowledged his mother, sister, and girlfriend as he left the courtroom following his sentence.