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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Oliver Pridmore

Pregnant newly-wed killed by man high on cocaine 'driving like he's invincible'

A pregnant newly-wed was tragically killed by a cocaine-fuelled motorist "driving like he was invincible", an inquest has heard.

Yasmin O'Donnell, 29, was on her way home from work when Jason Dey, 36, smashed into her head-on, reports LincolnshireLive.

The mum-to-be - who was 12 weeks pregnant at the time of the horror crash - suffered a head injury, which proved to be fatal.

Dey - who was said to be have been double the legal limit of cocaine - initially survived the incident but later died.

Lincolnshire Police said that it would have tried to prosecute the driver for death by dangerous driving if he was still alive.

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An inquest into Yasmin's death was held on Tuesday, the second anniversary of her marriage to Sam O'Donnell, 36.

He paid tribute to his wife in a statement read out at Myle Cross Centre, in Lincoln.

Police were called to the scene of the crash, on the A16 in the village of Burwell, near Louth, at around 6:21pm on July 15 last year.

Giving evidence, PC Godfrey Barlow said Yasmin was driving a Peugeot when she was met head-on by Dey's Mercedes-Benz.

The inquest heard that Dey had three other passengers in the vehicle, and a witness statement from one of them described the moments before he took Yasmin's life.

The statement, from the passenger in the front of the car, said Dey had stopped at a service station in Louth and that after getting back into the car he had put on some music which was turned up "loud to the point of being deafening".

Witness statements were also read out from drivers Dey had overtaken in the minutes before the fatal collision.

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One described his driving as "erratic" and "dangerous", with another witness claiming that he was travelling at up to 90mph.

A statement read out at the hearing said: "He was driving like he was invincible, and he could have done what he liked."

CCTV in the area as Dey approached a bend along the A16 suggests that he was travelling at 71mph in what was a 40mph zone.

As he approached the bend, PC Barlow said that Dey had tried to take the "racing line" around the corner and had crossed over a solid white line onto the opposite side of the carriageway.

It was at that moment that he crashed head-on into Yasmin's car, with the impact sending her backwards into a Ford which contained a man travelling with his wife and son.

The crash caused all three vehicles to be "consumed in flames" and one of Dey's headlights was found 34 metres away from the scene of the crash in some foliage.

Yasmin was killed as a result of the crash and the coroner ruled that an injury to her head was the cause of her death.

Everyone else involved survived the incident, some with significant injuries.

Dey was taken to the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham, having already failed a drugs test.

A test at the hospital revealed that he had 100 micrograms of cocaine in his blood.

Coroner Paul Cooper ruled that Yasmin had died as a result of the collision. Her family were in attendance at the inquest.

In his statement, her husband Sam said: "Yasmin was a thoroughly wholesome person, inside and out. She was so hardworking, sweet and kind.

"She had a craft room and was very creative. She did weaving, crochet, macramé and if she needed a new dress, she could just make one. Our house is filled with her creations.

"They are a permanent reminder of her talent, creativity and love, and a source of strength for me.

"Yasmin was 12 weeks pregnant and we grieve not only for her, but for all that might have been. She would have been a brilliant mother.

"Knowing she had that experience taken away from her makes it all the more painful for me and for her family. Not only have we lost a wonderful wife/sister/ daughter, we have also lost a future child/grandchild.

"Yasmin never fell out with anyone. She was so laid back and nothing ever bothered her.

"Before her, I was quite a fiery person. She changed my life. I don't want to ever let her down. She gave me more than I could ever put into words. We had each other and so we had everything we wanted.

"Losing her totally spun my life upside down. She didn't cause the collision. She had no control over what happened to her.

"The world lost a beautiful person, through no fault of her own, and it's heart-breaking. She was just so fundamentally good.

"We all love and miss her deeply. If I could change places with her, I would do it in a heartbeat.

Speaking following the inquest, Detective Sergeant Emma Ward said: "This has been one of the worst investigations that we have had.

"It's absolutely heartbreaking, especially given the circumstances of Mrs O'Donnell being pregnant and that she and Mr O'Donnell had only recently got married.

"Myself and PC Barlow and other officers have watched this go on and on to get to this stage and the death of Mr Dey unfortunately means that the sense of justice for the family is missing."

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