Coventry hit-and-run deaths: Man guilty of causing boys' deaths

Corey, six, and Casper Platt-May, two, were on a family trip to a park when they were hit by a car

A man has admitted causing the deaths of two young brothers in a hit-and-run crash in Coventry last month.

Corey, six, and Casper Platt-May, two, were on a family trip to the park when they were hit by Robert Brown's car.

Brown, 53, of Attwood Crescent, Wyken, admitted causing the deaths by dangerous driving on 22 February.

The court heard he had previously been jailed for possessing a machete and had been let out on licence just six days before the crash.

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Corey and Casper had been with a group of up to nine children crossing Macdonald Road in the Stoke area of the city at about 14:00 GMT when Brown's Ford Focus ploughed into them.

Both boys were taken to hospital with severe injuries but neither could be saved. Their mother, who had been with them at the time, was unhurt.

Corey (left) and Casper Platt-May were described by Corey's head teacher as "lovely boys"

The court heard Brown - and his passenger, Gwendoline Harrison - tried to flee the scene on foot but members of the public attempted to stop them.

Harrison, 42, hit a someone who intervened and admitted a charge of assault intending to resist arrest.

The judge adjourned sentencing until 27 April and remanded Brown in custody until then.

Tyrone Smith QC, defending, said the presiding judge would need to watch "troubling" CCTV footage before deciding on a punishment.

The court heard how Robert Brown and Gwendoline Harrison tried to flee the scene after the crash

The court heard Brown had been jailed for six months in November for possessing an offensive weapon and was released on licence less than a week before the crash.

One of Brown's release conditions was not to contact Harrison, of Triumph Close, also in Wyken, while on licence.

On Monday, Brown admitted all charges, including two counts of death by dangerous driving, driving whilst disqualified, using a motor vehicle without insurance and using a motor vehicle without a licence.

The prosecution said it would offer no evidence on Harrison's second alleged offence of perverting the course of justice.

Photos, tributes and toys were among items left at the scene

A donation page set up to help the boys' family cover funeral costs has amassed more than £26,000 following donations from more than 1,500 supporters.

Louise Platt-May said earlier this month on Facebook she could not bring herself to talk about what happened to her sons, but that she was "overwhelmed" by the community's help.

Previously she had described Corey as loving "school more than any kid I know" but said his "main passion in life was his football".

Floral tributes were laid at Coventry Cathedral, where a memorial service was held last week

Casper "was so loving and caring and constantly told his family how much he loved them," his mother said.

She said: "He loved walking everywhere with his wellies and splashing in the puddles."

Rob Matthews, head of Ravensdale Primary School where Corey went, described them as "lovely boys", adding that Corey "lit up the room he was in with his energy".

The boys also have two brothers, aged eight and four.