Bridgend: Speeding driver who killed teen rider's horse jailed

The court heard David Kobetic said to the 16-year-old after hitting her horse: "What have you done to my car?"

A speeding driver has been jailed after colliding with and killing a teenage rider's horse in a quiet country lane.

David Kobetic, 52, was driving at almost twice the speed limit when he hit Charlotte Pickett, 16, and her horse, Archie in Bridgend last year.

Charlotte had been returning her horse to the stable when she spotted Kobetic's car coming towards her.

The judge at Cardiff Crown Court sentenced him to two years after he pleaded guilty to dangerous driving.

He was also banned from driving for 11 years.

The court heard the teenager was "thrown off" her horse when the car, travelling at up to 60mph in a 30mph zone, hit the horse on 12 November 2020.

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She said she had waved her arms in a bid to get him to slow down but was hit and landed on the car and then on the floor.

The court was told Kobetic, of Bridgend, got out his car and said: "Look what you have done to my car."

He had claimed Charlotte had been riding in the middle of the road but she was actually up against the verge.

A vet attended the scene and said the horse had suffered a fracture near the pelvis.

It was decided it would be put down but it died from the injuries before this was possible.

The court heard Charlotte suffered back pain and bruising and was taken to hospital, and was still suffering from pain.

'My best friend'

She was given Archie as a Christmas present by her parents four years ago.

"I have been distraught over the death of my horse. I was inconsolable and angry that the driver drove like an idiot," she told the court.

"I have been having flashbacks of the incident, and I can't watch TV because I get anxious if I think someone is going to get hurt. I cannot stop thinking about the pain that Archie was in.

"I cannot face the thought of riding another horse in the future, and I feel lucky to still be alive."

The court heard Kobetic was involved in another incident of dangerous driving just months later.

His wife called police when he got behind the wheel after allegedly taking drugs. He was spotted driving erratically and straddling white lines on the road.

A police officer found him in his car while appearing "intoxicated" and "unable to walk".

Recorder Judge IWL Jones said: "You are extremely lucky that someone did not die.

"Your own wife was so concerned that she herself rang the police."

Ch Insp Helen Coulthard of South Wales Police said: "When David Kobetic gets behind the wheel, his vehicle is a lethal weapon which makes him too dangerous to be on our roads."