Eastleigh taxi driver on trial for killing dad in M3 crash

Mohamed Saleemi had used his mobile phone to send a text 60 seconds before he hit and killed Good Samaritan Vologea Mihaliuc just days before his 55th birthday, jurors were told. Mr Mihaliuc, a 54-year-old recovery worker, was helping a broken-down vehicle free of charge on the M3 near Chilworth on February 21, 2022. Saleemi, 64, smashed into him while travelling between 50 and 70mph then hid his phone from police, it was heard.

Recommended reading: Saleemi - who had just finished his shift as a taxi driver in Winchester[1] - denies causing death by dangerous driving following the death of Romanian father Mr Mihaliuc. Southampton Crown Court heard Mr Mihaliuc and a friend had gone to a broken-down car on the M3, which belonged to a friend of a friend.

It was just after 11pm, with clear conditions and no rain, when they arrived at the car and the owner left with another friend. The car had its hazard lights on and the truck had its recovery lights on to be clearly visible, the court was told. Mr Mihaliuc and his friend were strapping the car to their recovery truck when Saleemi "veered onto the hard shoulder", prosecutor Thom Dyke told the court.

His Mercedes Vito, which can seat eight passengers, went "into the back of the recovery truck where the deceased was standing, then turned on its side and slid down the road in a shower of sparks", Mr Dyke said. Mr Mihaliuc's friend felt "a rush of cold air before he'd realised that his friend had been hit". Saleemi was 'crying and screaming in a foreign language' and didn't speak to bystanders before he was taken to hospital, the court heard.

He was uninjured and discharged himself because of a six-hour wait. A test showed that Saleemi had no drugs or alcohol in his system. The taxi driver provided a mobile phone to the police that night, but analysis carried out found that the phone hadn't been used at all that day, jurors heard.

Saleemi denied having two phones, but later said that he'd lost his personal phone during the crash. When his second phone was discovered in his possession, analysis showed that he had made two phone calls in the minutes leading up to the crash, and even sent a text less than a minute before. Saleemi, of Cedar Road, Eastleigh[2], denies causing death by dangerous driving but admits causing death by careless driving and perverting the course of justice.

Prosecuting, Thom Dyke said: "Vologea Mihaliuc suffered catastrophic injuries and died at the scene. "You can see from CCTV that amber beacon lights on top of the truck provided clear illumination of the vehicle. "While neither was wearing high visibility clothing, it's clear that the lighting and conditions were sufficient that a driver should see what was happening."

The trial continues.

References

1. ^ Winchester (www.dailyecho.co.uk)
2. ^ Eastleigh (www.dailyecho.co.uk)