A video filmed from the inside of a car shows the final moments of two young men high on a cocktail of drugs before their vehicle crashed into a church wall, killing them both.
The in-car footage shows driver Kyle Careford, 20, and his friend Michael Owen, 21, speeding along the country lanes in the early hours of the morning on April 12.
Michael appears to be navigating his friend through the dark and can also be heard repeatedly telling Kyle to slow down as they hit 90mph.
Seconds later the camera goes dark and the sounds of the fatal crash in the village of Rotherfield can be heard.
The boys’ families have released the shocking footage as a warning to other youngsters about the dangers of drug driving.
Speaking after the inquest, Michael’s mother Kat said:
We bring our children up teaching them right from wrong. We guide them and give them our advice and hope they listen, but once they are adults we hope they make the right choices. I really don’t know why the boys chose to do what they did, but I blame them both for the decisions they made on this night.
If all this stops one person from making the same mistake, then some good has come from showing this video. I’m hoping it will have an impact on young people and make them see that a bit of fun can have such devastating consequences.
I would like all the young people out there to take notice and realise that you are not invincible and take seriously how precious your lives are to yourselves and others. I want young drivers to consider how much devastation it causes to the families and loved ones that are left behind.
Watching the video was very upsetting, but I’m hoping it can be used in a positive way, by showing young people what could happen to them.
The video certainly doesn’t make for pleasant viewing but hopefully it can make a difference. As Chief Inspector Phil Nicholas from the Surrey and Sussex road policing unit added: “If the release of this incredibly impactive footage results in lives saved, then it will be a valuable legacy of Michael and Kyle’s sad deaths”.
