Driver banned from the road following deaths of elderly couple in crash

Careless driver: McCrohon was banned from the road for a year.

A driver has been banned from the road for one year following the deaths of a "loving and caring" couple killed in a road smash.

Gary McCrohon crashed into another car while driving his Nissan Skyline on the A944 dual carriageway at Westhill, Aberdeen, on February 18, 2009.

The 33-year-old lost control of his sports car while driving along the other side of the road. The vehicle smashed through the central reservation into another car.

William Cable, 79, and his wife Elizabeth, 78, could do nothing to avoid the collision and died at the scene.

Their red Vauxhall Corsa was forced into the air due to the impact and landed upside down in a field, killing the couple instantly.

McCrohon was charged with death by careless driving following a lengthy police investigation but denied the offence.

On Friday, at Aberdeen Sheriff Court, a jury of nine women and five men found him guilty of the lesser offence of careless driving by a unanimous verdict.

McCrohon was fined £1000 and disqualified from driving for 12 months.

Relatives of Mr and Mrs Cable paid tribute to the couple after the case and said they hoped lessons would be learned.

A family spokesman said: "The tragic loss of loving and caring parents, and grandparents, is difficult for all to come to terms with.

"From today it is time to move on. The family can only hope and wish lessons will be learned and from that the loss of a life on the roads will be avoided."

McCrohon was convicted of careless driving because he was driving too fast for the road and weather conditions and travelling too close to the vehicle in front of him.

Witnesses driving behind his black Nissan Skyline estimated that he was driving within the speed limit at about 60mph.

One driver said he appeared to be only half a car length away from the rear of the van in front of him minutes before the accident.

The car went out of control when he turned on to the inside lane of the Aberdeen-Westhill stretch of dual carriageway. His car spun out of control, striking the central reservation and ploughing into Mr and Mrs Cabel's car.

Sentencing McCrohon, Sheriff William Summers said McCrohon's lawyer had described the accident as a "desperate tragedy" and said it was hard to disagree.

The sheriff added: "It's something the family will have to live with for the rest of their lives."

People who read this story also read