This is the moment a cocaine-addled driver drove through a quiet town just before hitting and killing a 13-year-old boy in a hit-and-run.
Teenager Kaylan Hippsley suffered multiple fatal injuries as a result of the collision in Hirwaun, South Wales, and died days later in hospital.
Harley Whiteman, 19, was driving the Ford Fiesta that hit Kaylan about 6.15pm on February 29, while the boy was standing outside a Co-op store with his friends.
Witnesses estimated the car was traveling between 40 and 60 mph when it attempted to swerve from a car traveling in the opposite direction.
Shocking footage shows Whiteman speeding down a quiet street, narrowly avoiding parked cars and barely stopping at an intersection.
Whiteman’s car mounted the curb and hit Kaylan with the near side of the Fiesta, prosecutor Julia Cox said.
After the collision, the defendant is alleged to have stopped a nursing student who was performing CPR on Kaylan, saying, ‘Do you think I give a damn about this kid on the ground?’ Why the fuck don’t you all just drop it and stop doing that?
Harley Whiteman is seen speeding down a quiet road, narrowly avoiding parked cars and barely stopping at an intersection.
Kaylan Hippsley, 13, (pictured) suffered multiple fatal injuries as a result of the collision in Hirwaun, South Wales, and died days later in hospital.
Harley Whiteman, 19, (pictured) was driving the Ford Fiesta that hit Kaylan at around 6.15pm on February 29, while the boy was standing outside a Co-op store with his friends.
Bystanders tried to push Whiteman away when he became agitated and yelled at a man who asked about his car. He replied: ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about… I don’t have a car, I don’t even drive.’ The defendant also picked a fight with a man while Kaylan was dying on the road.
Police attended and Whiteman had to be restrained when he was arrested, with police believing he was extremely intoxicated.
Mrs Cox said the defendant abused police and the public, and showed no remorse for his actions, saying: “It was a good show.”
He was asked to perform a roadside breath test and provide a breath and blood sample, but he refused to do so. When he was interviewed, Whiteman made no comment, but later told a probation worker that he had consumed a line of cocaine and four pints of beer before the collision.
CCTV investigations revealed Whiteman had been to The Cambrian pub in Aberdare and The Glancynon Inn in Hirwaun, where the landlord described the defendant as drunk and told him to leave due to his behaviour.
Kaylan died in the hospital on March 3 and never regained consciousness. He was a pupil at Aberdare Community School and was a keen football and rugby player.
He lived with his grandmother Kay Hippsley and lost his father at the age of six. He liked to play with friends in town and at the YMCA. Kaylan was described as a “cheeky guy” who was “polite, creative and charming.”
Kaylan died in the hospital on March 3 and never regained consciousness.
In a victim personal statement read to the court, Kaylan’s sister Olivia said: “There are no words I can express to adequately describe the horror this caused to me and my family, and writing this caused unimaginable pain.” .
‘Every time I tried it I was completely overwhelmed.
“Today real justice cannot be done. Harley Whiteman has taken something from our family that can never be repaid. We live in fear of having to pass him on the street, but we hope it will be a long time before we have to deal with this.
‘Kaylan was a bright and intelligent young man who had his whole life ahead of him, loved playing rugby and was loved by everyone who knew him. I fell to the ground screaming when I heard the worst news of my life, that Kaylan had been hit by a car, and my heart shattered into a million pieces.
‘This happened in front of his friends who had to watch their friend die in front of their eyes in the worst way possible.
‘I’m 19 years old and I spend most weekends with my grandmother, who can’t be alone. Our father unfortunately died in 2018, the only thing I had left of my father was my younger brother.
‘Now I have to face the pain and carry this alone (…) I was hoping to start working, but this is almost impossible because I am constantly anxious and depressed (…) I can’t go past the place where they killed him . , I can’t be in a hospital, I’m afraid that cars are going too fast and I don’t want to be in a car.
‘I can’t be alone, when I am, my mind goes 100 miles an hour. I’ve been sleeping in my mother’s bed with her for weeks, I’ve lost my appetite and I can’t sleep. Every time I close my eyes I see my brother’s corpse.
The tragedy occurred on a quiet street in a village in Hirwaun, South Wales.
I felt guilty as if I was abandoning him and at the funeral I had to be taken out of there by my family.
‘My pain is suffocating and I feel so alone I can’t breathe. I feel guilty for being happy and I ask myself every day, why Kaylan? Why a young man who has done nothing wrong? Why not me? I wish it were me, many times I wish I wasn’t here anymore.
‘Kaylan didn’t die in a tragic accident, it wasn’t until someone took him from us that someone was to blame and is responsible, which makes it so much worse. That person is you (addressing Whiteman).
‘You killed my 13-year-old brother, who had his whole life ahead of him in the most dangerous situation, driving under the influence of alcohol with passengers in the car. You haven’t shown any remorse.
“You ruined far more than one life and as a result, you deserve to face the consequences.”
In her statement, Kaylan’s grandmother, Kay Hippsley, said: “Every time I leave the house since this happened, Harley Whiteman’s actions changed my life and will never be the same.” Not only has he taken my grandson away from me, but he has ruined a multitude of lives. Kaylan came to live with me eight years ago, which was a huge task when I am 60 years old and have severe rheumatoid arthritis. We lost his father and my son six years ago.
‘Having him with me helped me overcome the pain and brought moments of joy to my life. He was a 13-year-old boy who will never have the opportunity to live the life he deserves. Getting a call to say Kaylan had been hit by a car was horrible and everything changed from that moment on.
‘I can’t go back home, to the family home. I was only at the hospital and at Kaylan’s funeral. I feel like Kaylan’s life also ends prematurely and so does mine. I have no purpose for my life and I don’t know how I will continue.
‘I am so angry and devastated that I cannot put into words how this has affected my life and my family. I cannot live with this nor find it in my heart to forgive Harley Whiteman. ‘This will be a small chapter in her life, but Kaylan’s life is over and our family will carry the pain and heartbreak to our final days.’
Whiteman, of Cae Felin Parc, Hirwaun, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving and failing to provide a sample. The court heard he was previously of good character.
Mitigating, James Hartson said his client was unable to provide an explanation for his actions at the scene of the collision and was “shocked, disoriented and terrified.” The lawyer said that the defendant’s regret will live on for the rest of his life, and that he had lost his own father at the age of five.
Sentencing, Judge Jeremy Jenkins said: ‘(Kaylan) was murdered because of his blatant and callous disregard for the rules of the road and the people around him. (Kaylan’s) injuries were described as insurmountable.
‘At the scene his behavior was abhorrent and ruthless, and when arrested he was aggressive, rebellious and unrepentant.
“Anyone who commits a crime as appalling as this is committing a crime too serious to be punished by anything other than an immediate custodial sentence.”
Whiteman was sentenced to six years and nine months in prison in a young offenders’ institute. He was disqualified from driving for a period of eight years and four months.
