Thief involved in fatal road crash jailed

A thief who stole an off-road vehicle that was involved in what police described as a "horrific" fatal crash has been jailed for four years.

Paul Barnes, 33, from Yarm, and a 17-year-old boy from Stockton-on-Tees who has not been named, stole the Polaris vehicle from a village near Northallerton in July 2021.

They made off along the A19 and hit a van as they crossed a junction near Thimbleby. The teenager was thrown off the vehicle, hit by a car and later died.

At Teesside Crown Court, Barnes was jailed after admitting burglary, taking a vehicle without the owner's consent and drug possession.

Barnes, who was the passenger, managed to jump clear before the vehicles collided, the court heard.

Barnes was arrested and taken to hospital with minor injuries, where officers also discovered he was carrying a large number of class-C opioid drugs.

He was jailed for four years and disqualified from driving for a minimum of 37 months.

Sgt Marie Williams of North Yorkshire Police’s Major Collision Investigation Team said it was a "horrific incident".

“There are no winners from an investigation like this. But it’s right that Barnes has been brought to justice and sentenced by the courts today," she said.

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