A Perth man who pleaded guilty to a drug-fuelled crash that claimed the lives of three people has been sentenced to more than 12 years in jail.
Three children were left orphaned when Amy-Lee Strong and her partner Kyrone Eades died in the back seat of a high-performance car being driven by Matthew John Conduit on North Lake Road in Cockburn in December 2015.
Conduit, 27, lost control of the vehicle at speeds of about 130 kilometres an hour and hit a tree, splitting the car in two.
Conduit's brother Ashley De Agrela, who was in the front seat, died later in hospital.
The court was told earlier on the day, Conduit had learned he had been made redundant from his job and had been drinking, and that he was also found with methylamphetamine in his system.
No apology offered to victims' families
During sentencing, Judge Philip McCann said the tragedy was entirely caused by Conduit driving at high speeds — under the influence of drugs, and in a high-powered V8 car that he was not familiar with — in order to evade police.
"I find the offending unusually serious, but it was not the worst case of its kind," Judge McCann said.
He said the suffering of the victims' families had been exacerbated by Conduit's delay in accepting responsibility.
He only pleaded guilty after he failed to turn up for a court hearing and a warrant was issued for his arrest.
Conduit was also caught 10 months after the crash driving without a licence.
"There is very little mitigation," Judge McCann said, adding there had been some signs of remorse but no apology.
He said Conduit presented an elevated risk of reoffending.
Family focusing on orphaned children
Outside court, Mr Eades' mother Francina Wynne said the late guilty plea made her loss even harder to deal with.
"It was 20 months and it was a long time for us, because it made us suffer," Ms Wynne said.
"He should have done it at the beginning and maybe things would have been easier for us."
Family member Kelly Hart said the focus would now be on supporting Mr Eades' and Ms Armstrong's three children, aged 7, 11 and 12.
"[He] showed no remorse and did not even apologise or say sorry for what's happened," she said.
"Our focus is now on Kyrone and Amy's children, who have to grow up without their parents."
Conduit's earliest release date is February 2028.
