Prison for Ferrari driver who ran over mum in retail park...

[dutchman]

A Ferrari driver has been jailed for nine months for knocking over a mum in a Coventry shopping centre car park.

Tarlochan Singh, who lives in one of Coventry’s most exclusive streets, had been “showing off’’ behind the wheel of the red Ferrari Spider, a court was told.

Singh, of Cryfield Grange Road, Gibbet Hill, hit a 50-year-old woman at the Gallagher Retail Park, in Foleshill.

At Coventry Crown Court on Monday, Judge John Maxwell said although the exact speed he was driving at could be debated, he was driving over the car park’s 5mph-10mph limit.

Singh, 34, was last month found guilty of dangerous driving after running over Nasreen Khan while driving the Ferrari through the car park off Stoney Stanton Road.

Eye-witnesses said Singh, who had denied the charge, had been driving at 25mph-30mph and described Mrs Khan being thrown into the air “like a rag doll”.

Her son, Shaffah Khan, aged 30 was also injured when he was hit by the car’s wing mirror.

Singh had told the court he worked as a taxi driver and witnesses had been “jealous” of the Ferrari.

Sally Bennett-Jenkins, defending, said: “He accepts the car struck Mrs Khan and for that he is truly remorseful.

"He is a man who has a clean driving record of 17 years and has found a living in driving, and this offence can be regarded as out of character and an error of judgement for a matter of seconds.

“This conviction is a personal blow. He has been struggling financially and could lose his livelihood.

“He has not been earning a large wage and for the last year has been seeking additional work.”

Mrs Bennett-Jenkins added that Singh had borrowed the Ferrari from a friend.

She said his work managing student properties in the city had also been affected by the driving ban.

On hearing Singh’s pleas for a lighter sentence, Judge Maxwell said although the injuries suffered by the victims were not serious, the defendant had still been driving too fast.

He said: “In my view you were driving much too fast at an aggressively, excessive speed for the circumstances.

"You have a clean licence, and you have earned your living through driving but your driving on this occasion was at a very inappropriate speed.

“My conclusion is that you were showing off and it is perfectly obvious that while you were driving, heads were turning and people watching you, and you drove at speed with a complete disregard for the safety of pedestrians.”

He sentenced Singh to nine months in prison.

He was banned from driving for 18 months and was told he will remain disqualified until he passes an extended driving test.

Singh had earlier been involved in another court case after accusing a neighbour of illegally killing his dog.

A man was later cleared of destroying a dog without lawful excuse.