By Tony O’Riley-
A convicted drug dealer who killed a bus driver and injured 14 other people in a multi-vehicle crash has been sentenced to seven years and eight months in detention.
Dorjan Cera arrived in the UK from Albania at the age of 15 and had unsuccessfully sought asylum since. Cera also admitted seven further counts of causing injury by dangerous driving, being unlicensed and uninsured, and possession of an identity document with improper intent.
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He had been sentenced to two years in detention in September 2018 for possession with intent to supply class A drugs, driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence and without insurance, and possession of false identity documents, the court was told.
The drug dealer also tested positive for cocaine during a roadside drugs wipe test, but a subsequent blood test was negative.
Victim Kenneth Matcham, 60, was “ejected” from the single-decker bus he was driving after it was struck by Dorjan Cera’s car shortly after 10pm on October 31 last year.
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The impact caused the bus to hit a second single-decker travelling in the opposite direction in Sevenoaks Road in Orpington, south-east London, leaving multiple passengers injured.
Kenneth Matcham was ‘ejected’ from the single-decker bus he was driving by the force of the crash (Metropolitan Police/PA)
Cera, 20, had no insurance or licence at the time, and was driving a black Skoda Octavia he had hired using false documentation, the Old Bailey heard on Thursday.
Prosecutor Nathan Rasiah said the case involved an “appalling piece of driving”, which had “catastrophic consequences”.
He said: “The defendant drove his car at speed across a junction with a main road and collided with a bus.
“The impact of the collision forced the bus into the wrong lane, causing it to collide with another bus travelling in the opposite direction.
“Mr Kenneth Matcham, the driver of the first bus, was ejected from the vehicle as a result of the collision and died from his injuries, and a number of the passengers suffered serious injuries.”
Cera pleaded guilty in June to causing Mr Matcham’s death by dangerous driving.
Police at the scene of crash in Orpington on Halloween 2019 (Giles Anderson/PA)
Kenneth Matcham was ‘ejected’ from the single-decker bus he was driving by the force of the crash (Metropolitan Police/PA)
He also admitted seven further counts of causing injury by dangerous driving, being unlicensed and uninsured, and possession of an identity document with improper intent.
Police at the scene of crash in Orpington on Halloween 2019 (Giles Anderson/PA)
Grandfather-of-seven Mr Matcham had been driving the R11 service which was carrying six passengers when his vehicle was hit.
Mr Rasiah said Cera was travelling at a “constant speed” of between 41mph and 44mph along The Avenue as he approached the junction’s “give way” line before crashing.
Serious Injuries
Seven people suffered “serious” injuries, including passenger Paul Wassell, who broke his spine in “three or four places” when he was “ejected” from the bus, the court heard.
The force of impact caused the R11 service to hit another single-decker bus, which was running the 358 route, causing injuries to some of its passengers.
Cera, whose car also hit the second bus, was found in the driver’s seat, with the airbags deployed, by a firefighter.
After regaining consciousness, he “identified himself falsely” to police officers, Mr Rasiah said.
He tested positive for cocaine during a roadside drugs wipe test, but a subsequent blood test was negative, the court heard.
Dorjan Cera was on licence at the time of the crash (Tariq Sheikh/PA
Cera, 20, had no insurance or licence at the time, and was driving a black Skoda Octavia he had hired using false documentation, the Old Bailey heard on Thursday.
Prosecutor Nathan Rasiah said the case involved an “appalling piece of driving”, which had “catastrophic consequences”.
He said: “The defendant drove his car at speed across a junction with a main road and collided with a bus.
“The impact of the collision forced the bus into the wrong lane, causing it to collide with another bus travelling in the opposite direction.
“Mr Kenneth Matcham, the driver of the first bus, was ejected from the vehicle as a result of the collision and died from his injuries, and a number of the passengers suffered serious injuries.”
Cera pleaded guilty in June to causing Mr Matcham’s death by dangerous driving.
He also admitted seven further counts of causing injury by dangerous driving, being unlicensed and uninsured, and possession of an identity document with improper intent.
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