Mansfield drug-driver jailed for causing crash that left passenger in a coma

Rhys Hayden, aged 24, of York Street, had been taking cocaine before he got behind the wheel of his Audi A4 car and drove along the A52 in Ingoldmells, Lincolnshire just after noon on March 6, 2022.

He crashed head on into a white Range Rover being driven in the opposite direction, while driving at more than 70mph on a 30mph road..

One of his passengers, Bradley Tunstall, aged 19, of Alcock Avenue, Mansfield, suffered life-alerting injuries in the crash, including a smashed pelvis, two bleeds on the brain, broken ribs, a collapsed lung, and a bleed in the eye.

He was airlifted to hospital in Hull and placed into an induced coma for about eight days in intensive care, before they started to bring him around.

Remarkably, he is now starting to recover from his injuries.

Both the driver and passenger of the Range Rover were taken to hospital at the time after they suffered minor injuries.

Forensic vehicle investigators at Lincolnshire Police examined the Audi, which showed the automatic braking system was faulty and a contributory factor to the crash.

Bradley, who was 17 at the time, was the passenger in the front seat and was not wearing his seat belt, which police said Hayden, as the driver, should have been aware of.

Hayden was also uninsured at the time of the accident.

During police interview, Hayden admitted to driving like an “absolute idiot”.

Appearing at Lincolnshire Crown Court, he was jailed for two years and seven months for dangerous driving, driving without insurance, and driving while over the specified drug limit. He was also banned from driving for 46 months.

Detective Inspector Joanna Reeves, of Lincolnshire Police, said: “Hayden was a young driver, behind the wheel of a powerful car, which had a braking defect.

“He had cocaine in his system and was travelling at excessive speeds and did not have any car insurance at the time.

“There are no winners today. I hope other drivers will see this and chose to take different decisions when they are driving a vehicle.”

Bradley Tunstall’s dad Rick said: “I am pleased with the findings from the court.

"I was sure that he (Hayden) was going to get a suspended sentence and not really have to suffer any consequences of what his actions caused.

"As a family we are pleased that this has now been dealt with and can now finally begin to move on and focus on Bradley’s recovery and trying to get back to as normal a life as he’s going to have.”