Driver high on cocaine jailed for killing boys in Cramlington crash

Police received a report from the ambulance service of a three-vehicle collision on the A192 Hartford Bank, in Cramlington on Friday, December 22 last year.

It was reported that a Suzuki Vitara, a Range Rover Evoque and a Ford Focus had collided.

Emergency services attended and despite the efforts of paramedics and members of the public, 18-year-old Connor Lapworth, of Blyth, who was one of the passengers of the Suzuki, died at the scene.

Another passenger of the Suzuki, 15-year-old Corey Mavin, also of Blyth, suffered serious head injuries in the incident and was taken to hospital but died days later.

Corey Mavin, 15, and Connor Lapworth, 18, were killed in a crash days before Christmas (Image: Contributor)A 17 year-old-male passenger in the Suzuki and the 36-year-old female driver of the Range Rover both suffered serious, non-life threatening injuries and were later discharged from hospital following treatment.

The driver of the Suzuki, Garry Robinson, 41, was subsequently arrested.

Investigations found he was twice above the legal limit for cocaine at the time of the collision and ten times over the legal limit for Benzoylecgonine (BZE), the cocaine breakdown product.

He was later charged with two counts of causing death by dangerous driving and two counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

Garry Robinson (Image: Contributor)Robinson, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to all charges in a hearing at Newcastle Crown Court in February.

Following the hearing he was remanded in custody.

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Yesterday (Thursday, May 2), he was back at the same court where he was jailed for a total of 18 years.

Following the hearing, Sergeant Russell Surrey, of Northumbria Police, said: “First and foremost, I would like to pay tribute to the families of Connor and Corey as well as those who were injured in the collision for their co-operation during the past five months.

“They have shown incredible strength at what has been an extremely difficult time and we continue to offer them any support they need.”

Sgt Surrey added: “Garry Robinson’s actions on the evening of the collision showed complete and utter disregard for others and we are pleased that he has been handed a lengthy custodial sentence at crown court.

“He has caused utter devastation to several families and he will have to live with that for the rest of his life. Robinson now has a significant amount of time with which to reflect upon what he has done.

“I hope this case serves as a severe warning to anybody thinking of getting behind the wheel of a vehicle while under the influence of drugs.

“The laws of the road are there for a reason, they are not optional under any circumstances, and we will continue to take robust action against anybody found to have carried out these types of offences against other road users within our community.”