Horror as man tries to drive car off Humber Bridge at 100mph
This is the horrifying moment a man tried to drive his car off the Humber Bridge at 100mph because he had “just had enough”.
CCTV footage captured Johnathan Dent, 32, racing along the bridge in his Mitsubishi 4 x 4, before swerving into barriers and landing on the path – narrowly avoiding falling into the estuary below.
Dent, from Grimsby, Lincolnshire, was cut from the wreck of his vehicle, and suffered injuries including a broken arm.
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Grimsby Crown Court heard that the incident on July 3 caused £11,000 worth of damage to the bridge, near Hull.
Recorder Bryan Cox QC acknowledged that a prison sentence – while justified – was not appropriate in this case and told Dent that his actions had “put other members of the public at severe risk”.
Prosecutor Stephen Welch said the defendant was travelling towards the north bank when he made a “sharp manoeuvre” towards the side of the bridge before the car ended up on a footpath used by pedestrians and cyclists.
An accident investigator said Dent was travelling at between 95 and 104mph at the time of the collision.
Mr Welch said: “He said he was at home and had been having issues with the Child Support Agency, an ex-girlfriend and his partner. His lorry was parked in Immingham and he intended to go there and sleep in the cab.”
But he said the defendant had instead headed towards the Humber Bridge thinking a drive would calm him down.
When asked by police why he had driven into the barriers, Dent said: “I don’t know, I had probably just had enough.”
Paul Genney, mitigating, said: “He has never been in trouble in his life before. He has taken steps to sort out the problems that overcame him. He wanted to kill himself, he was desperate.”
He added that the crash had “opened his eyes to problems he was not aware of then and he has made steps to address that.”
Sentencing, Recorder Cox said a prison sentence was “justified” but also “not appropriate”, and told Dent: “You will appreciate I am sure that what you did put other members of the public at severe risk.”
Dent was given a sentence of three months in prison for dangerous driving, suspended for two years, and was disqualified from driving for three years.
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