A1(M) Bowburn crash: Durham Police hope killer driver will be a warning

Police hope the tragic case of three people killed by a lorry driver using his phone at the wheel will serve as a warning to others.

Ion Nicu Onut killed David Daglish, Elaine Sullivan and Paul Mullen when he drove at 58mph into stationary traffic on the A1(M) near Durham in July 2021.

Onut, who was jailed for almost nine years, has warned other drivers not follow his example.

Durham Police said he was a "normal guy" who made a "devastating decision".

The force worked with the BBC to produce a documentary about the crash including interviews from prison with Onut, as well as witnesses, victims and relatives of those killed.

He was accessing dating sites on his phone for about 40 minutes before the crash at 18:15 BST on 15 July at Bowburn.

David Daglish and Elaine Sullivan from Seaham were killed in the crash...

...as was Paul Mullen from Washington

Det Con Natalie Horner said it had been "unimaginable to think this lorry had just ploughed into stationary traffic at nearly 60mph and to know we had multiple deaths".

"It still makes you tingle thinking about how traumatic it was for everybody," she told BBC Breakfast, adding: "It's so sad to think those people died that day and could have been saved if [Onut] hadn't been on his phone."

She said Onut, a Romanian national who was living in Galashiels in the Scottish Borders, told police early on he "just wanted to say sorry" and to work with the force to prevent further deaths.

Deadly Browsing: The Lorry Driver

How a lorry driver looking at dating sites went on to kill three people in a crash.

Available now on BBC iPlayer (UK Only)

"He was a normal guy that made that decision to drive whilst he was on his phone," Det Con Horner said, adding: "He is where he should be serving his sentence, but on the other hand he does want to show people he is human and made this huge life decision."

Insp Kevin Salter said the crash had been devastating and its aftermath "impacts on me still".

He said: "This is the perfect example of a normal guy with a normal job going out to work that day, who didn't intend to kill three people and he's made that devastating decision."

Ion Nicu Onut is serving more than eight years in prison for causing the crash

Insp Salter said people should simply not touch their phones while driving with the law having been tightened up recently.

"We want to see a stigma that comes with drink-driving also associated with the use of a mobile telephone," he said.

Det Con Natalie Horner led the investigation into the crash

Det Con Horner said it was "frustrating" people were still using phones while driving despite warnings but hoped they would learn from the "hard-hitting" documentary.

"I don't think there is anybody at that scene who won't forget that day but I just hope something good can come out of something so traumatic," she said.