Driver caused Leeds four-car pile-up after crazy overtaking stunt on blind bend
A driver overtook on a blind bend at speed and caused a four-car pile up from which firefighters had to cut motorists free.
Impatient Tanyaradzwa Kariwo pulled the deadly manoeuvre in Garforth, narrowly missing one oncoming vehicle before losing control and ploughing into the next and forcing that into another oncoming car.
Leeds Crown Court heard that Kariwo, who had only got his licence two months prior, was then caught drink driving a short time after the horror smash.
He was jailed after he admitted causing serious injury through dangerous driving.
It was heard that Kariwo, behind the wheel of a Toyota Yaris, had been heading towards Garforth on Selby Road at around 10.20pm on November 29, 2023.
Witnesses driving a Skoda Octavia in front of the Yaris said it was getting so close to them they later told police it was “practically in the boot of the car” as they passed Garforth Garden Centre.
Prosecutor Paul Canfield said as they got into Garforth, Kariwo then decided to overtake on the blind left-hand bend at speed. The road also has solid white lines, meaning overtaking is prohibited.
Dash-cam footage of the oncoming Ford car was screened to the court which showed the Yaris forced into evasive action as it emerged from the bend.
He mounted the pavement, then lost control and ploughed into a VW Caddy behind the Ford. Spinning and landing on its side, the VW was then pushed into the path of Skoda Octavia, which then struck an Audi A3.
All of the vehicles sustained “extensive damage”, Mr Canfield said. Kariwo needed to be cut free.
The VW Caddy driver suffered a fractured sternum, internal bleeding and was in hospital for four days. The court heard the driver still suffered from flashbacks, nightmares and it had affected his ability to work.
The Skoda driver also suffered fractured fingers.
Kariwo, 24, was interviewed but refused to answer questions. He was then caught over the legal alcohol limit months later.
Mitigating, Charles Blatchford said that Kariwo, of Gratton Road, Bradford, had entered an early guilty plea.
He said: “He had been at work that day and had felt unwell. He has expressed his remorse for his actions and the harm that he caused.”
He said it was a “short-lived matter” but Kariwo “understood the stupidity of his actions”.
Judge Tom Bayliss KC told Kariwo: “You are a new driver, you had not long passed your test.
“Overtaking on a left-hand bend, there was no excuse for that. Even a new driver would know it’s a dangerous thing to do.
“You chose to overtake, perhaps out of impatience and in an extremely dangerous place.
“It was clearly a highly-dangerous manoeuvre.”
He jailed him for two years and gave him a three-year driving ban, telling him he needed take an extended retest to get his licence back.
Judge Bayliss said: “Driving like this can only be met with an appropriate punishment of immediate custody.”