Dashcam footage shows the gruesome moment a truck driver rams and kills three motorists after being distracted by a seven-minute Facebook video on his phone.
Michal Kopaniarz, 39, crashed his nine-tonne vehicle into mother-of-two and future wife Alex Britton, 28, as well as two other motorists who stopped to help her after their car broke down on the A303 near of Andover. , Hampshire, on August 25, 2021.
In video footage shown to the court, the truck is seen speeding towards parked vehicles at 56 mph around 8:40 a.m., before Kopaniarz is seen post-collision snapping his phone in half. and throwing it into a nearby brush.
Kopaniarz pleaded guilty to causing three dangerous driving deaths. He also admitted to trying to destroy his Samsung phone, which showed that he was using it moments before crashing into his victim.
Good Samaritan Tina Ince, 58, of Portsmouth, was driving a Mercedes food delivery van when she stopped to help Ms Britton, whose Vauxhall Astra had broken down, the court was told.
Michal Kopaniarz (pictured out of court), 39, crashed his nine-ton truck into Alex Britton, 28-year-old mother of two and future wife, as well as two other motorists who stopped to help her after that his car broke down. on the A303 near Andover, Hampshire on August 25, 2021
Alex Britton (pictured), 28, who along with Tina Ince, 58, and Tom Watson, 30, all in separate vehicles, were pronounced dead at the scene following a crash on the A303 near Andover, Hampshire , on August 25, 2021.
The driver of the DAF recovery truck, Tom Watson, 30, also stopped to help Ms Britton. All were pronounced dead at the scene after the collision.
At Winchester Crown Court on Friday, grieving families heard for the first time that Kopaniarz had been distracted by a video he was watching on his phone and even sent a link to a woman on Facebook.
Prosecutor Simon Jones told the court that on a day of “clear” visibility, Kopaniarz had an “unimpeded view” of 170 meters of the stationary vehicles.
He said: “Alex Britton was driving on the A303 that morning when his vehicle broke down in lane one.”
Mrs. Ince had stopped by to see if she could “help” her and was joined by Mr. Watson, who also stopped by to see if he could help with his recovery truck.
“Meanwhile, the defendant was driving his vehicle to deliver bottled water to a Co-op depot in Andover,” he continued.
‘He was unable to react in time to the vehicles in front of him. All three died instantly and suffered catastrophic injuries.
Police analysis of the phone that Kopaniarz had tried to hide showed that he had watched a seven-minute LadBible video and sent the link to a woman on Facebook just 40 seconds before the crash.
“After viewing the video clip, just seconds before the impact, the defendant was typing the destination of his delivery on a map application,” it added.
DAF recovery truck driver Tom Watson (pictured), 30, also stopped at the scene to help Ms Britton, before she was killed in the accident.
Good Samaritan Tina Ince, 58, of Portsmouth, was driving a Mercedes food delivery van when she stopped to help Ms Britton, whose Vauxhall Astra had broken down, the court was told.
Dashcam footage of Kopaniarz’s truck shows him continuing at 55 mph toward the back of the food delivery van.
Dash cam footage seen in court later showed Kopaniarz breaking his phone in half and tossing it to the edge of the nearby grass.
Mr. Jones continued: “From the time of this collision, defendant’s actions were directed at destroying evidence that he knew implicated him and points to his guilt and dangerous driving.”
“Although he said that he did not see (the vehicles), he knows that the reason for this was because he was using his phone.
“The defendant did not see the vehicles in lane one because he was not paying attention and was clearly distracted using his mobile phone.”
When police first interviewed him, Kopaniarz said he had a problem with his brakes.
However, Jones said: “Regardless of whether the emergency brakes were working, he just wasn’t in a position to apply them because he was looking at his phone.”
The court heard that analysis of the physical evidence found that the brakes were not applied until the heavy vehicle was within 30 to 40 feet of the eventual pileup.
He added: ‘It is clear that mobile phone use appears to be the main factor in this collision.
‘The driving fell well below what would be expected of a competent and careful driver and a man who drives for a living.
“It was clear that driving in this manner would be dangerous and would result in the tragic death of three people.”
Kopaniarz is seen after the collision splitting his phone in half and throwing it into nearby brush.
Kopaniarz pleaded guilty to causing three dangerous driving deaths. He also admitted to trying to destroy his Samsung phone (photo moment), which proved he was using it when he crashed into his victims.
Several family members and bereaved couples read their moving personal statements in court.
Ms Britton and her childhood sweetheart Aaron Law, with whom she shared daughters Payton, five, and Ava, two, were engaged and due to marry after their initial wedding was postponed due to Covid.
An emotional Mr. Law said: ‘My life, my daughters’ lives and my family’s lives are ruined and forever changed.
“No one can prepare to have to tell their three-year-old daughter that Mommy died and she will never come home.
‘There are no words that begin to describe how it felt.
‘My kids shouldn’t have to refer to their mom as a star. As beautiful as it sounds, it breaks my heart.
‘Alex was and still is my whole world. You have to understand what you have stolen from me, my children and my entire family.
Looking directly at Kopaniarz, he said, “You took my wife, you took my best friend, you took the mother of my children, and you stole my happiness forever.”
Tom Watson’s tearful widow Emma said: ‘You were my best friend, my soul mate, my heart.
‘I miss him every second of every day. We wanted to grow old together but this has been stolen from us.
The hearing continues. Kopaniarz will be sentenced this afternoon.
