Ice-addicted hoon jailed after killing two friends in horror Cranbourne smash, running from scene
A County Court judge has slammed the behaviour of an ice-addicted hoon who crashed a car at Cranbourne killing two of his friends, labelling the offending as “truly terrible”. It comes as the 21-year-old was slapped with hard jail time.
South East
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The ice-addicted hoon who drove the car involved in a fatal crash which killed two of his friends in Cranbourne has been jailed for 11 years.
Dylan Cassidy, 21, was sentenced in the County Court to a minimum eight years’ prison after he was found guilty of several charges including fail to assist after accident involving a death, reckless conduct endanger life and culpable driving.
It comes after Cassidy, then 20, was seen speeding and looping in the hours before the crash which killed his friends Jordy Kirkwood, 18, and Byron Hampton, 16, and left 17-year-old Dakoda Nicholson battling life threatening spinal injuries on August 11.
Cassidy was “wildly out of control” and loaded on a cocktail of ice and booze when the Holden Commodore he was driving slammed into a Holden Captiva travelling south along the South Gippsland Hwy outside Cranbourne McDonalds just after 4pm.
As selfless witnesses rushed to help victims stuck inside the mangled vehicles, Cassidy pinched a bag of drugs from the car and threw away bags of ice on the street as he fled the tragic pile up.
Passenger Jack Ledlin, 18, exited the car and brandished a knife before he was apprehended by witnesses.
Judge Liz Gaynor slammed Cassidy’s “appalling” behaviour, which also left two young children in the Holden Captiva — aged six and nine — with injuries including broken bones and post traumatic stress disorder.
“This is absolutely appalling, incredibly dangerous offending. You have permanently affected young lives, you have caused two deaths … you have caused serious injuries to two little girls and immense distress to the families of those young people who have died,” Judge Liz Gaynor said.
“You had been on an ice-fuelled offending spree before August 11 … in the end, despite your age and the difficulties in your life I find your moral culpability to be high.
“This was truly terrible offending, two families have been left forever grieving …(for Ms Nicholson) the effects of those injuries will be ongoing and debilitating.”
Cassidy pleaded guilty to 28 charges including fail to assist after accident involving a death, negligently causing serious injury, reckless conduct endanger life, culpable driving and drive in a manner dangerous.
He was sentenced to 11 years’ and five months’ jail with a non-parole period of eight years.
brittany.goldsmith@news.com.au
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