1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212 
New witness in M5 crash case
Page 12
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
• A Taunton lorry driver who says he was wrongly accused of causing a devastating accident has come a step closer to clearing his name after another truck driver came forward as a witness.
Roger Coles stands accused of driving without due care and attention, failing to stop after an accident and failing to report an accident (CM 17-23 Oct). He also faces a battery of civil claims including compensation for personal injuries after a Range Rover Discovery rolled three times after swerving off the M5 behind him on 4 June.
Coles has always claimed he saw the accident and stopped to report it to the police using his mobile phone. But a lorry driver behind him described his parked vehicle to Devon and Cornwall police, prompting them to prosecute him.
"We have found a witness who was southbound and saw everything," says Coles.
The driver came forward after seeing a copy of a Commercial Motor story about the accident posted in Graham's transport stop near Junction 24 of the M5. Coles had put it there in a desperate bid to find witnesses who could help him clear his name.
With the trial put back from 18 October to 28 November, Coles is now arranging tests to prove that his trailer suffered none of the collision damage that would be there if the Discovery had hit it He also wants the emergency phone records that should prove he was the man who first reported the accident to the police.
Devon and Cornwall police refuse to comment on the case.