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Victim Darren Hughes
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Driver in hit-and-run death crash may have left country
A HIT-and-run driver wanted by police over the death of a cyclist in Holloway is believed to be in hiding overseas.
Police are still hunting the driver of a Jaguar XJR which struck Darren Hughes, 31, in Holloway Road in September last year.
Officers found the car abandoned close to the scene. They know the owner’s name and say the car is registered to his wife’s address, but still haven’t been able to find him. It is thought he may have left the country.
Coroner Dr Andrew Reid told a St Pancras inquest on Tuesday he would have to record an open verdict, in the absence of any information from the driver.
Mr Hughes, an unemployed labourer, of Watkinson Road, Holloway, was cycling to his sister’s house on his brightly-lit bike at 9pm when a Jaguar hit him from behind. He died from severe multiple injuries to his lungs, liver and spleen at the Royal Free Hospital, Hampstead, the next day.
Mr Hughes’s aunt and girlfriend have repeatedly appealed for the driver to come forward.
His aunt, Carol Donaghey, of Hornsey Road, said at the time: “You wouldn’t do this to a dog and leave them lying in the street like that. This person never even had the decency to call an ambulance.”
Teacher Mary White, who was walking her dog when the accident happened, told the inquest a very fast car passed her.
She added: “It was more than 70mph. The car was speeding and I saw a body hitting the bonnet. It threw him in the air, and he landed face down outside the flats. It was like hitting a doll. He seemed to have no weight.”
Eye-witness Eileen Carnell, a university lecturer, said: “What drew my attention was a powerful car accelerating. I could see it was heading towards a cyclist and made no attempt to slow down. It hit the cyclist and he was thrown into the air.”
Collision investigator PC John Carter said there was little evidence to determine the car’s speed but he estimated it to have been about 27-39mph.
Detective Sergeant David Hindmarsh, who is in charge of the investigation, said: “The vehicle wasn’t stolen at the time. It was registered to an individual at an address outside London and inquiries found it was recently bought at auction.”
Police have not issued a warrant, and are unable to say if the driver has been placed on the police database or if airports and port authorities have been alerted.
Speaking after the inquest, Det Sgt Hindmarsh said: “The investigation is still continuing because we’ve got to trace this man.”
Coroner Dr Reid said: “It’s not clear how he failed to see the cyclist. In the absence of any evidence from the driver, I’m going to return an open verdict. The evidence does not fully or further disclose the mechanism by which the collision occurred.”
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