Drug driver jailed over head-on crash with biker

Mitchell Gregory got behind the wheel of a car while under the influence of cocaine

A driver high on cocaine who crashed head-on into a motorcyclist has been jailed for more than two years.

Mitchell Gregory, 22, crossed the central white lines of the A360 in Market Lavington in Wiltshire on 22 September last year. The motorbike rider, a man in his 20s, suffered life-changing injuries.

Gregory, of Bushell Road, in Poole, admitted to officers at the scene he had lost control of his black Ford Fiesta going around a corner, and blood tests revealed a "significant" amount of cocaine in his system, Wiltshire Police said.

He pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving and drug driving and was jailed for 27 months at Salisbury Crown Court on 5 September.

Gregory was also disqualified from driving for four years, after which he must pass an extended driving test.

Investigating officer PC Lucy Thompson, of Wiltshire Police, said: "Gregory's actions that day are a tragic example of why it is never OK to drive when you are under the influence of drugs.

"Gregory – who had consumed a significant amount of cocaine – misjudged a bend, leading him to collide head-on with the victim who was travelling on a motorbike in the opposite direction.

"The victim sadly suffered life-changing injuries in the collision which have severely impacted on his chosen career."

She added: "Gregory has now been jailed, where I hope he reflects on the impact of his actions."