[A] man has been jailed for causing death by dangerous driving following a collision in Blackburn which killed a nine-year-old boy.
Atif Dayaji, 27, of St Stephens Avenue, Blackburn, was sentenced today (October 12th) to four years in prison following a hearing at Preston’s Sessions House Crown Court. He was also disqualified from driving for five years.
The collision occurred at around 10.55pm on August 4th 2016 at the junction of Whalley New Road and Plane Street, as nine-year-old Adam Imfal-Limbada made his way home from Mosque with his father.
The pair had become briefly separated from each other as they walked home, and Adam was crossing the road alone when he was struck.
In the moments before the collision occurred Dayaji had been speeding along Whalley New Road in a BMW 4 Series he had rented earlier that afternoon, reaching speeds of almost 70mph.
He is believed to have hit Adam at around 67 mph, throwing him around 38 metres down the road.
Adam was taken to Royal Blackburn Hospital with catastrophic injuries, but was sadly pronounced dead a short time later.
Dayaji pleaded guilty last month to causing death by dangerous driving.
Sergeant John Jennings-Wharton, of the Lancashire Roads Policing Unit, said: “The death of nine-year-old Adam Imfal-Limbada is an utter tragedy, not least because it was completely avoidable. Had Dayaji been driving carefully and to the speed limit Adam would almost certainly have made it home safely that night. Dayaji now has to spend the rest of his life with a young child’s death on his conscience.
“Our sympathies now lie with Adam’s family and friends. They have lost a very much-loved young boy, and I can only hope they take some crumb of comfort from the fact justice has been served and Dayaji is now facing time behind bars.
“I also hope the result today acts as a reminder to all motorists to drive carefully and safely. It should send a message that we, at Lancashire Police, will not tolerate dangerous driving and those who put other peoples’ lives at risk in this way will be dealt with robustly and proportionately.”
In a statement released following the hearing, Adam’s family said: “Adam was a joyful boy who would liven up the room with his good personality. Everybody in the community knew him, would talk to him and laugh with him. He was a very much-loved son and brother, who was adored by everyone. He is greatly missed and the pain we have gone through and are going through is unbearable. We wouldn’t wish it upon anyone.
“The prison sentence given today will only serve its purpose to punish the person who killed our son. I would like to take this opportunity to thank our family, friends and Adam’s school teachers who have supported us throughout. We would also like to thank the paramedics, A&E staff at Royal Blackburn Hospital and the police force, especially PC Rizwan Quraishi who has been with us and assisted us throughout this difficult and heart-breaking time. Thankyou very much.”
