A chef who was driving on the wrong side of the road has been jailed for killing much-loved local taxi driver Chris ‘Mukka’ Boyle in a car crash on the outskirts of Tenby.
Thirty-year-old Mateusz Sikorski, pleaded guilty to ‘death by dangerous driving’ at a hearing last month, and was sentenced to two years and four months in prison at Swansea Crown Court on Friday, November 8.
Mr Boyle died at the scene on September 2 on the A4139 between Tenby and Penally, with the head-on crash occurring at around 10.15pm.
The Court heard that Sikorski, who was born in Poland, but had grown up in Italy and then worked around Europe as a chef, was visiting Wales to look for work, and had been staying with friends in Manorbier who ran a local restaurant.
He was driving a friend's BMW towards Penally when he collided head-on with Mr Boyle, who was travelling in the opposite direction heading back into Tenby.
Sikorski had initially told police officers at the scene that he was on the right side of the road, but later admitted differently, with CCTV footage from nearby Kiln Park service station capturing the footage.
The court heard that the defendant had been driving on the wrong side for at least half a mile before the collision occurred.
At an inquest into the death of the fifty-seven-year-old dad from Kilgetty at Haverfordwest County Hall on September 20, the coroner’s officer for Dyfed-Powys Police, told the acting senior coroner for Pembrokeshire, that a post mortem had confirmed that Mr Boyle’s cause of death was due to ‘multiple traumatic injuries’.
A victim impact statement read out in court on behalf of Mr Boyle’s sister, Elizabeth Evans stated: “The loss of Chris has been absolutely devastating. His tragic death by no fault of his own has left a void in our lives that can never be filled."
On sentencing, Judge Geraint Walters told the defendant: "It's incumbent on all of us no matter what country we're driving in, that we familiarise ourselves with the rules. Either you had forgotten or were ill equipped.”
Craig Harding of the Crown Prosecution Service said: “Mateusz Sikorski's manner of driving posed a major risk to other road users and resulted in fatal consequences.
“Our thoughts and sympathies remain with Mr Boyle’s family and friends who have suffered a dreadful loss,” he added.
