Fraser Garden, 55, has been sentenced to 13 years and six months in prison for the death of 74-year-old John Bell, a great-grandfather who was struck and killed by a stolen Maserati. The incident occurred on April 13 when Garden, a disqualified driver, stole the luxury vehicle from a showroom forecourt in Broughty Ferry, near Dundee.
Garden drove the Maserati at speeds exceeding 80 mph in residential areas with 30 mph limits. He ran a red light, drove on the wrong side of the road, and overtook vehicles despite oncoming traffic. Less than 750 meters from the showroom, Garden lost control of the car on a bend, hitting a kerb, a traffic island, and crashing through a hedge into a garden.
Mr. Bell was working in the garden for a neighbor when the stolen car struck him, pinning him against the wall of a house. He sustained "non-survivable injuries." Graeme Jessop KC, prosecuting, told the court that Garden was driving at 85 mph just 3.3 seconds before the crash and was still traveling at 34 mph when he hit the house. A judge described the event as an "appalling episode of driving."
At the time of the crash, Garden was under three separate driving disqualifications.
Garden pleaded guilty to causing Mr. Bell's death by dangerous driving at Edinburgh's High Court. He also admitted to theft of a motor vehicle, driving without insurance, driving while disqualified, and failing to provide a blood sample for drug testing. When arrested, Garden reportedly said, "Sorry."
Mr. Bell, a former taxi driver, was a father to three children, ten grandchildren, and nine great-grandchildren.
The Maserati, purchased by the showroom director five years prior for £70,000, was valued at approximately £40,000 on the day of the theft. It was reported to be irreparably damaged in the crash. The car, a 523-brake horsepower model capable of accelerating from zero to 60 mph in 4.6 seconds and reaching a top speed of 193 mph, was being operated by Garden when he encountered Mr. Bell.