Driver ploughed into crowd outside Derbyshire pub ‘with intention to kill,’ jury told

An "enraged" driver deliberately drove at and hit a gang of people outside a Derbyshire pub three times "intending to kill them", a jury was told. Shocking CCTV footage played at Derby Crown Court [1] showed Jake Wallis plough into around 10 people before driving off and doing it again two more times. On the final occasion, the 28-year-old missed the group but seconds later reversed at speed striking two female friends and dragging them under his van before running off and being caught. One of those victims suffered life-changing injuries with the prosecution telling his trial "the fact that no-one died is absolutely miraculous".

Wallis, of Orchard Rise [2], Cocking Lane, Treswell, Retford, in Nottinghamshire, is on trial for eight counts of attempted murder. He denies them all. Poll: Do you feel safe in Derby city centre?[3]

Andy Peet, opening the trial today (Wednesday, November 29), said the incident took place outside the Nag's Head pub, in Clowne,[4] on the evening of June 3, this year. He said groups of drinkers, including the defendant, were inside and that Wallis was assaulted inside during what he called "a melee". The prosecutor said the defendant went outside where there was some shadow boxing between Wallis and a man and following that he got into a van which was in the car park of the pub.

Mr Peet said: "No doubt those that were in the pub and outside thought he was going home. Absolutely not. "What happened thereafter was that he got into the van and drove out of the car park at speed almost hitting another car.

He was absolutely furious, the crown says, having been humiliated from the assault inside the pub itself and far from going home he drove, again at speed, into the group of people. "He did it deliberately, he did it intending to kill those he was intending to hit. The fact that no-one died, not just from that incident, but a third collision and then a third collision is absolutely miraculous."

Mr Peet played graphic videos of the collisions to the jury which showed the van Wallis was driving speed out of the car park, before going round a roundabout at speed and driving first into a crowd of around 10 people before driving off. Wallis then drives off and back hitting another person outside the pub and then returns a third time where he first misses the crowd but reverses at speed into two women, leaving both under the van. He then gets out and runs off, chased by some of the crowd who trip him up yards away and beat him unconscious.

Mr Peet said: "(One of the women) was catastrophically-injured as a result. Her friend was injured but not as badly, (a man) was hit in the first collision and was hit so badly he had to be dragged away from being hit again." The prosecutor told the jury of six men and six women that the question they need to ask themselves when they retire at the end of the trial is what the defendant's intention was when he decided to deliberately drive into the crowd three times.

He said: "What was in this defendant's head? What was he thinking? What was his state of mind?

What was he intending? The issue is did this defendant intend to kill anyone? "(The crown says) the defendant deliberately decided, having hit the first group of people, 'I am not going to go home, I am going to go back and I am going to go back again'."

The trial, which is expected to go into next week, continues.

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References

^ Shocking CCTV footage played at Derby Crown Court (www.derbytelegraph.co.uk)
^ Wallis, of Orchard Rise (www.derbytelegraph.co.uk)
^ Do you feel safe in Derby city centre? (xd.wayin.com)
^ outside the Nag's Head pub, in Clowne, (www.derbytelegraph.co.uk)
^ the main Derbyshire Live newsletter here (www.derbytelegraph.co.uk)