BMW 'unrecognisable' after 80mph Leeds lamppost smash threw driver's girlfriend clear of the wreckage

The sporty BMW was described as “unrecognisable” after the horror crash involving David Sparkes and his partner in Yeadon in the early hours of November 22, 2020. Sparkes put his foot down in the high-powered car while arguing with the female.

He narrowly avoided colliding with a car and ignored road signals, but he then lost control of the vehicle on Dibb Lane. He hit a street sign on the wrong side of the road, then collided with a bollard before ploughing into the lamppost. Experts say he was travelling at at least 80mph in the 30mph residential area in the moments before impact, while residents reported hearing the loud bang of the collision.

Sparkes’ girlfriend was found under debris away from the main wreckage of the ca and was initially unconscious. It was not known if she was wearing a seat belt. Sparkes, who was in the wreckage, was heard calling out for her and became hysterical, shouting that he was sorry.

She was rushed to Leeds General Infirmary and found to have suffered a spinal fracture, fractured jaw, arm, and a double open leg break. She also had a collapsed lung and a laceration to her liver.

No victim impact statement was included from the injured woman after Leeds Crown Court was told she did not support the prosecution.

By comparison, Sparkes, of Sandfield Road, Bradford, broke his nose and suffered minor burns to his hands. He admitted a charge of causing serious injury through dangerous driving.

Prosecutor Susannah Proctor said that he admitted at the scene that he was behind the wheel. Just three months before the crash he received his driving licence back after serving an 18-month ban for drink driving.

Mitigating, Safter Salam said Sparkes, who is now 27, had stayed out of trouble in the past two years. He said on that night, his partner had been drinking and was irate, but said that Sparkes “must accept that he was driving at speed”.

He added: “He accepts the custody threshold has been passed.”

Judge Andrew Stubbs KC jailed him for 25 months, and banned him from driving for 62 months. He said: “It was at grossly excessive speed and you were in the throws of an argument, she was grabbing you and hitting things in the car. But rather than stop, you carried on.

"You were not paying attention to your speed, to other road users or even traffic signals. You plainly lost control.

"The car was virtually destroyed. The photographs I have seen show a car that is almost unrecognisable.

"Your speed was at least 80mph. The limit was 30mph. Your passenger was thrown from the vehicle. Such was the scene of devastation you did not even know where she had gone.

"That car was your pride and joy, you knew how fast it could go and chose to drive at that excessive speed.”