Former police officer jailed for killing Market Drayton mother and daughter in A5 crash
A former police officer from Telford has been jailed for causing the deaths of a Market Drayton mother and daughter in a collision on the A5 last summer.
Vinod Dahiya, aged 46, from the Muxton area, pleaded guilty at Stafford Crown Court today to two counts of causing death by dangerous driving and one count of causing serious injury by dangerous driving
He was also sentenced at the same hearing and was jailed for six years and eight months and disqualified from driving for seven years and will be required to take an extended driving retest.
The charges relate to a road traffic collision on the A5, Weston, on 6 July 2015.
Diane McGrail, aged 53, and Kira Elizabeth McGrail, aged 14, a mother and daughter from the Oakley area of Market Drayton, died at the scene of the collision on the A5, Weston, on 6 July 2015.
Both were passengers in a black Seat Ibiza. The 18-year-old male driver, also a member of the same family, continues to recover at home.
Five vehicles were involved in the collision which occurred at approximately 2.20pm. They were the black Seat Ibiza, a blue Audi R8, an orange Renault Megane, a black BMW 5 series (driven by Dahiya) and a silver Citroen C4 Picasso.
As a result of the collision the road was closed in both directions for several hours whilst specialist officers carried out a detailed examination of the scene. It had reopened by 1am on Tuesday 7 July.
Sgt Ian Tanner, investigating officer, said: "Today’s plea and sentence is to be welcomed and I hope it brings some comfort to the family and friends of Diane and Kira.
"This collision robbed a mother and daughter of their lives and left a third family member [Diane’s son/Kira’s brother] seriously injured. He is still continuing to receive medical treatment.
"Dahiya caused this collision through irresponsible and dangerous driving and his actions were completely reckless.
"There is no place for dangerous driving on the county’s roads and we continue to work with our partners to educate and inform people about the need for safe driving.
"We are committed to reducing the number of serious injury and fatal collisions on the roads of Staffordshire."
