20-year-old man jailed for causing crash which resulted in death of his cousin

A 20 year-old man from Mountain Ash was jailed for causing death by careless or inconsiderate driving last week.

Ethan Roberts, of Jeffrey Street, was jailed for six months at Cardiff Crown Court on Friday, 10 July, 2020.

His cousin, Ryan Hamer, also 20, was a passenger in the blue Toyota Yaris which Roberts was driving when he lost control of the car when taking a bend on the A4059.

The car swerved across the road and into a ditch, flipping over before it came to rest.

Ethan Roberts had just picked his cousin up from a party at the Mount Pleasant Hotel, and was giving him and two friends a lift to a nightclub in Aberdare.

Ryan Hamer was pronounced deceased at the University Hospital of Wales – a post mortem determined that he had died from a broken neck.

Ethan Roberts, and two other males, all required hospital treatment for serious injuries but have since made a recovery.

Roadside tests showed that Roberts had no alcohol or illicit drugs in his system at the time of the collision.

He was arrested and then charged with causing death by careless driving to which he pleaded guilty.

After the sentencing hearing, Ryan Hamer’s family paid tribute to Ryan, saying:

“Today has been another difficult day in the journey of our devastating loss. No sentence will ever be enough to bring justice for the death of our Ryan. We would like to thank South Wales Police for their efforts and support throughout the investigation. We would especially like to thank our Family Liaison Officer Darren Westall for all he has done. Our family is broken.”

Upon Roberts’ release from prison, he will begin a 39 month ban from driving.

Roads Policing Officer and Serious Collision Investigator Lee Christer, said: “This was a tragic incident with the most serious of consequences. Ethan Roberts who was of previous clean character and at 20 years old finds himself in jail. He must also live with the fact that his actions led to the death of his own cousin.

“This is just another example of somebody just driving too fast – a car handled in the wrong way is a lethal weapon. It can happen to anybody and I hope others learn from this and seriously consider their approach to driving.

“Ryan Hamer’s family are heartbroken, but I hope that today’s verdict lets them begin the process of rebuilding their lives.”