BEXLEYHEATH CABBIE JAILED FOR SIX YEARS AFTER FATAL CRASH CAUSED BY EXTREME FATIGUE

A commercial taxi driver who spent 53 hours behind the wheel across three days has been jailed for six years after falling asleep and killing a man who had stopped for a break in a layby.

Kolawole Erunkulu, 45, from Bexleyheath, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving after his Audi swerved into a layby on the A23 in Merstham and struck 59-year-old Philip Dray on August 17, 2025.

Detectives examining data from Erunkulu's employers and interior vehicle footage discovered he had been working for roughly 12 hours straight with only minor breaks immediately prior to the crash.

In the preceding three days, his longest rest period was a mere seven hours.

Inside-camera footage captured the cabbie falling into a "microsleep" - a brief second-long episode where the brain stops processing information - causing his car to veer across white lines and hit Mr Dray as he returned to his Volkswagen.

Mr Dray, described by his grieving partner as “a sweet, gentle, and caring man” and his sister as a conscientious driver who spent his life keeping others safe, died at the scene.

Erunkulu continued driving for another 10 seconds before parking in the next layby.

Passing sentence at Guildford Crown Court, Her Honour Judge Lees remarked: “The footage shows the defendant was extremely tired and, in my view, has continued to drive when he must have known that.

"He was driving commercially. Even though he didn’t have a passenger, he could have done and has driven in that state. All of this could have been stopped had he have slept.”

Acting Detective Inspector Rob Baldwin from the Serious Collision Investigation Unit emphasised the severe risks uncovered by the investigation, stating: “This case sadly highlights the very real dangers of driving while fatigued.

"Mr Erunkulu had worked long hours with insufficient rest over the preceding days, accumulating a sleep debt.”

Erunkulu received an eight-year driving disqualification to run concurrently with his prison sentence and must pass an extended retest to ever drive again.

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