Blueline taxi driver crashed into pensioner in Newcastle causing him to have his lower leg amputatedhttps://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/no ... r-34231988A pensioner had to have his lower leg amputated after a Blueline taxi driver crashed into him and caused serious injuries. Hasan Goni was behind the wheel of a Ford Mondeo taxi when he turned a corner and crashed into a 68-year-old man who'd been to the doctors.
The victim was left with a number of fractures and spent a total of four months in hospital. After suffering infection and other health complications in hospital, his lower left leg had to be amputated.
On Friday, Goni, of Hull Street, Elswick, Newcastle, appeared at Newcastle Crown Court to be sentenced for causing serious injury by careless driving. The 43-year-old had pleaded guilty to the offence.
The court heard that on October 21 2024, the victim was leaving his doctors on Great North Road in Gosforth at around 3pm. He had recently undergone a hip replacement and used a walking stick.
Nicoleta Alistari, prosecuting, said: "The defendant was driving a Ford Mondeo on Great North Road. He was a self-employed taxi driver collecting a Blueline customer and was running late."
The court heard that Goni then turned right into a street but failed to see the man walking across the road. Ms Alistari said: "The front of the Ford struck him and threw him into the air. He felt immediate pain in both legs."
Goni - who had no alcohol or drugs in his system - immediately pulled over and called 999. The court was told his first words when getting out of the taxi were: "I was going 20."
The victim was taken to the Royal Victoria Infirmary after sustaining fractures to his ribs, femur and neck. He was then treated in the intensive care unit.
Ms Alistari said that during his time in hospital, the victim suffered pneumonia and infection. His lower left leg was later amputated. In a statement read to the court, he said he underwent three operations following the crash and suffered from flashbacks.
Christopher Knox, defending, said Goni - who had been a taxi driver for seven years - was not speeding at the time of the crash. He said: "It is unfortunate that he has not seen the injured party crossing the road.
"He very much regrets it. He had the feeling he had done nothing deliberate...it was a momentary lapse of concentration. He was not driving inappropriately before this." The court was told that Goni has since lost his job as a taxi driver.
Judge Robert Adams sentenced Goni to 25 weeks prison, suspended for 18 months. He must also carry out 20 rehabilitation days, 180 hours unpaid work, and he was banned from driving for 18 months.
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