A Ventnor man who fled from the scene of a crash in Shanklin earlier this year, but left a letter on the dashboard with his name and address on, has been banned from the roads for 12 months.
Jamie Thomas, 38, of Southgrove Road in Ventnor appeared before the Isle of Wight Magistrates Court on Friday charged with driving without due care and attention, failing to stop after a road accident, driving without a licence and driving without insurance. He pleaded guilty to all 4 offences.
Thomas was charged with the offences following a crash at the junction of North Road and Queen’s Road in Shanklin on 15th February this year, during which Thomas’ black Citroen Berlingo (BF15 VZX) collided with a grey Nissan Note. The female driver of the Nissan escaped injury.
As first reported by Island Echo at the time Police descended on the area at around 19:30 and a dog unit was called in to track down the Berlingo driver, but he had already made good his escape from the tracker dog.
It didn’t take long for officers to catch up with Thomas though as he left a letter on the dashboard of the van with his full name and address on show. The Berlingo came to rest against a wall and facing the wrong way.
Magistrates handed Thomas a 12-month driving ban and an 18-month community order with 250 hours of unpaid work attached for the offence of failing to stop, with his driving record endorsed for the other offences. He was ordered to pay £85 costs with a £95 surcharge.
It would seem the Citroen Berlingo the vehicle of choice with the criminal classes of the Isle of Wight. It’s come along way from being driven at 38mph every where in the West Wight