Lachlan Hargreaves, Newport: Man convicted after BMW crashed at high speed, trapping mate in burning car
A youth has life-long injuries after he was trapped in a burning BMW, being driven by his mate, which exploded in flame after crashing into a tree at high speed.
Manly
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A Sydney youth suffered horrific burns after a high-powered luxury car being driven at high speed by his mate, speared into a tree and exploded into flames.
The young man, with a broken pelvis and two fractured legs, was stuck in the burning BMW 335i coupe on the edge of McCarrs Creek Rd at Church Point as his legs and buttocks caught alight.
Its driver, Lachlan Hargreaves, 25, of Newport, who sustained a serious brain injury and burns in the crash, managed to pull his friend free of the wreckage before it became totally engulfed in fire.
Hargreaves, a mechanic, had been driving the BMW at 1am on September 6 last year through Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park at “well in excess” of the 60km/h speed limit, on a suspended licence.
He pleaded guilty in Manly Local Court on Wednesday to one count of grievous bodily harm caused by a negligent act and one count of driving on a suspended licence.
The court heard that the young passenger suffered massive burns to his lower body and was still undergoing extensive rehabilitation on his legs after numerous operations.
The police prosecutor asked that Hargreaves, who already had 14 serious driving offences on his record and who had his licence suspended for breaching his “good behaviour licence”, to be jailed.
“This incident can be described as nothing less than horrific,” the prosecutor said.
In a facts sheet tendered to court police stated that earlier in the night, Hargreaves had met a group of friends at a spot on McCarrs Creek Rd that was popular with “car enthusiasts”.
Police found that the car had “locked up” on a left hand bend and crossed to the wrong side of the road before it hit the tree.
“(The victim) could not feel his legs and could not move,” according to the facts sheet. “The victim looked down and saw his legs on fire.”
Hargreaves’ barrister, Stephen Russell, said his client had also been seriously injured, physically and mentally, and had a traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic amnesia.
Mr Russell said Hargreaves was no longer friends with the victim and that a number of other mates had “disowned” him.
The barrister said Hargreaves, who had apologised to his mate, did not hesitate to rescue his friend from the burning car, despite the risk to his own life.
Magistrate Robyn Denes said that she accepted that Hargreaves had suffered significant trauma and that he was remorseful for his actions, but noted that he had a “poor driving record”.
Ms Denes said she had to impose a sentence that sent a message, especially to young men who made up a large proportion of people who commit this type of offence.
“Before this incident occurred there was a complete lack of regard for the road rules and his own vulnerability.
“This (offence) was always going to happen.”
Hargreaves was convicted and handed an Intensive Correction Order in lieu of a jail sentence. He was also given 120 hours of community service and his licence was disqualified for 12 months.
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