Moment lorry driver ploughs into and kills stranded mum and 2 other motorists while looking at 7-minute video on phone
THIS is the harrowing moment a lorry driver ploughed into and killed a stranded mum and two other motorists while on his phone.
Michal Kopaniarz smashed into bride-to-be Alex Britton, 28, at 56mph on the A303 near Andover, Hampshire after she had broken down.
He also killed good Samaritans Tina Ince, 58, and recovery truck driver Tom Watson, 30, when they stopped to help the mum-of-two.
Following the triple tragedy, Kopaniarz was heard saying: “I’ve killed them, I’ve killed them, I didn’t see them, I couldn’t stop, it’s nine tonne lorry.”
Phone data later revealed he had been watching a seven minute LadBible video just seconds before the crash.
He has now been jailed for 12 years after he pleaded guilty to causing the three deaths by dangerous driving.
The 39-year-old also admitted perverting the course of justice by damaging and disposing of his mobile to hide the fact he was using it at the time of the crash.
Chilling footage shows Kopaniarz hurtling towards the stationary vehicles at 56mph.
He was also filmed dumping his phone in bushes after snapping it in two.
In a victim impact statement, Alex’s fiancé Aaron Law told how he met the mum when he was 15 and she was 16.
The couple were due to be married in March 2020 but postponed it to 2022 because of Covid.
Speaking directly to Kopaniarz, he said: “We never made it that day, because of what you’ve done.
“I never got to call her my wife. I couldn’t stand up and tell everyone that how much I loved her.
“On the day of the crash we had planned to take our daughters out to dinner. I was waiting at our house with my daughters when the door knocked. I was happy and expecting Alex. But it was police and they told us about what you did.
“It was the most devastating day. My life, my girls’ lives, my family’s lives were ruined and changed for ever.
“No one is prepared to tell their three-year-old daughter that her mummy has died.
“I know it’s not my fault. But I feel guilty about it every since. Imagine telling a man that his daughter has died.”
Aaron said his younger daughter, who was just 17 months at the time, “only knows her mummy” through photos and videos.
He said Alex never got to see her daughters in school uniforms as he told how they would “never grow up with the most important role model in their lives”.
Aaron added: “No more mummy hugs, no more kisses and no more giggles for my daughters.
“You took my wife, my best friend and the mother of my children, and my story of happily-ever-after.”
Winchester Crown Court heard Alex had been on her way to work on August 25, 2021, when her Vauxhall Astra broke down.
Tina pulled over in her food delivery van, while Tom was driving a breakdown recovery truck when he came across the women.
He parked the truck in front of the two vehicles and lowered its bed to remove the Astra from the carriageway.
As he was in the process of attaching the cable winch to the front of the car, Kopaniarz was looking at Lad Bible on his phone.
He smashed into the food delivery van, which then collided with the Astra, as Tina and Alex were stood between the two vehicles.
They were killed instantly alongside Tom after suffering “catastrophic injuries”.
After the horror, Kopaniarz broke his mobile in half and discarded the two parts on a verge along the side of the road.
The driver then told a witness: “I don’t know what happened, I don’t know what I did, I killed them.”
He continued “They’re dead, they’re dead, I’m not dead.”
Prosecutor Simon Jones told the court: “Police found the top half and bottom half of a white Samsung mobile phone on the ground in front of her near the crash site.
“Police later located the small data chip from the Samsung mobile phone and this was on the verge of the A303 dual carriageway.
“An analysis of this chip revealed the following key evidence to the extensive police investigation.
“The defendant was watching a Lad bible video from Facebook – and subsequently shared a link to that with another person whilst driving.”
The court was told on a day of “clear” visibility, Kopaniarz had a 170 metre “unobstructed view'” of the static vehicles.
When first interviewed by police, Kopaniarz claimed there had been an issue with his brakes.
The lie even led both Alex’s fiancé and mum to “feel sorry” for him until he eventually pleaded guilty.
Physical evidence analysis also found the brakes were not applied until the HGV was 9-12 metres away from other vehicles.
As well as a jail sentence, Kopaniarz was banned from driving for six years and must take an extended re-test before he is allowed his licence back.
Speaking of her pain at losing her husband, Tom’s wife Emma said today she misses him “every second of every day”.
Emma added: “I have suffered mentally. I have had very dark days. When I went back to home, I saw Tom had left the laundry and the half-eaten cereals.
“I was broken. My heart shattered. I wanted to know why someone take my life by being so reckless. Why can’t they concentrate on driving than killing my husband and two innocent lives.
“Life without Tom is difficult. He was my best friend and soul mate.”
Tina was previously praised by her family after she tried to help Alex.
They said: “Tina was a kind and generous person with a heart of gold.
“She lived as she died: helping people. Words do not begin to describe how much she will be missed by those who knew her. She was strong, hardworking, and truly one of a kind.”