Headcorn: Driver over drink limit in crash that killed four, inquest told

Tributes were left at the scene of the crash on Lenham Road in Headcorn

The driver of a car in which four men died was over the drink-drive limit when he crashed into a tree, an inquest heard.

It happened on Lenham Road in Headcorn, Kent, on 10 October while the men were travelling to watch the Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder boxing match.

Driver Johnny Cash, 44, his son Johnboy Cash, 19, died at the scene along with Miles Cash, 25, and Jacko Cosgrove, 18.

A coroner said the men all died of multiple injuries.

The inquest heard that three of the four died instantly. A fifth person, a boy aged 15, survived the crash but suffered serious injuries.

The inquest was told their car, a Toyota Hilux, had been travelling in convoy with two other vehicles en route to watch the heavyweight boxing match when the crash happened.

'Not wearing seatbelts'

At the inquest at the Archbishops Palace in Maidstone, coroner Patricia Harding said there was "no evidence of braking before the first collision".

She said: "I'm satisfied that the driver did provide a steering input to negotiate the bend but it was not sufficient to do so at the speed the vehicle was travelling."

She added: "It is likely in my judgement that those who died in the crash were not wearing seatbelts."

'Traces of cocaine'

Toxicology reports found that Johnny Cash, the driver, had 117mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood. The legal limit is 80mg.

Miles Cash and Jacko Cosgrove had traces of cocaine in their systems, the inquest was told.

Their car was travelling at speeds of up to 76mph immediately before the crash, on a 60mph speed limit road.

The Toyota Hilux collided head on with a tree in the early hours of 10 October

The inquest heard that crash scene investigators found the vehicle had strayed from the road on to a grass verge where it then hit a tree.

The car continued to travel before crashing head on with a large oak tree and rotating 180 degrees, ending in a ditch facing the opposite direction.

Ms Harding concluded: "It is appropriate for me to provide a short form conclusion of a road traffic collision."

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