A CREWE motorist who left his passenger to die following a collision near Middlewich has been jailed for three-and-a-half years.

Disqualified driver Liam Foster crashed a red Ford Focus on Warmingham Lane on Friday, October 8 last year while carrying four passengers; two women, age 30 and 57, a 25-year-old man and a 10-year-old child.

He asked another motorist to take him and the child to Crewe, but never returned to the scene of the crash at which Jacqueline Nolan, a rear-seat passenger in the vehicle, died.

Foster, 45, of Smallbrook Walk, Crewe, was sentenced at Chester Crown Court last Friday (February 4) after earlier pleading guilty to causing death by driving without due care and attention, causing a death while disqualified, causing a death while uninsured and failing to stop following a collision.

He was also banned from driving for 45 months and will be required to sit an extended retest.

The court heard how he was driving around a bend in the road when he lost control of the vehicle and collided with a tree.

Following the crash Foster collected the child from the rear of the car. He then approached another motorist, who had stopped at the scene, and asked to be taken to an address in Crewe on the understanding that he would return to the scene as soon as he had dropped off the child.

But the motorist waited more than 45 minutes for Foster, who failed to return.

Ms Nolan, 57, who lived in Crewe, was pronounced dead at the scene. Two other passengers in the vehicle also sustained minor injuries.

Cheshire Police launched a manhunt to locate Foster and he was finally arrested three days later when he contacted police on October 11.

After the sentencing, PC Nick Anderton, of the Serious and Complex Collision Investigation Unit, said: "This was a tragic but entirely preventable collision.

"Foster should never have been behind the wheel that day. He had no licence as he has never held a licence and has 37 previous convictions for disqualified driving.

"The road where the collision occurred was clearly marked, had a suitable speed limit and all of the appropriate signage was in place. Yet despite this, due to his driving Foster lost control of the vehicle and collided with the tree.

"Following the crash, he showed no regard for the passengers in the car and instead, rather than call for help, he was only interested in protecting himself and evading justice.

"Thankfully, following our investigation, Foster eventually realised that that there was no escape and handed himself in.

"Our thoughts remain with the family of Jacqueline Nolan, who have been left absolutely devastated by this tragic incident."