Motorist, 25, who tried to trick police by faking CCTV image to show his car outside his house at time he crashed into motorcyclist is jailed for seven months
- Sayeed Ahmed, 25, altered an image to lie to police about his car’s location
- He altered the timestamp on CCTV to make out his car was on his driveway
- Ahmed was jailed for seven months and banned from driving for 16 months
- He admitted attempting to pervert the course of justice and careless driving
A motorist has been jailed for seven months after doctoring the time stamp on a CCTV image to make out his car was at his home at the time he was accused of dangerous driving.
Sayeed Ahmed, 25, used his computer skills to alter the timing on a screenshot to show his VW Golf was parked more than 50 miles away from where his driving caused a motorcyclist to crash on the A12 near Ipswich, Suffolk.
Ipswich Crown Court heard how he sent the falsified image to police to try and escape justice after he was given a notice of intended prosecution for dangerous driving.
But officers saw through his story and seized equipment which showed he had doctored the time stamped picture.
Sayeed Ahmed (pictured), 25, used his computer skills to alter the timing on a screenshot to show his VW Golf was parked more than 50 miles away from where his driving caused a motorcyclist to crash on the A12 near Ipswich, Suffolk
Ahmed was jailed for seven months and banned from driving for 16 months after he admitted attempting to pervert the course of justice and careless driving.
The court heard he had been showing off to friends in a Lamborghini and Bentley by weaving his VW Golf in and out of traffic as they drove in convoy to a wedding.
The technical support engineer exchanged angry gestures with a motorcyclist before braking sharply in front of him, causing the biker to veer off the road.
The motorcyclist was taken to Ipswich Hospital with head injuries after the crash on the northbound A12 dual carriageway at Capel St Mary near Ipswich, Suffolk.
Police appealed for witnesses to the collision after Ahmed failed to stop and later identified the VW Golf involved as being registered to him at his home in Barking, Essex.
Ahmed made a failed attempt to mislead police with the fake CCTV image (pictured) showing his car outside his family home at the time of the crash just after 1.30pm on July 28, 2019
He then made his failed attempt to mislead police with the fake CCTV image showing his car outside his family home at the time of the crash just after 1.30pm on July 28, 2019.
The court heard how mobile phone footage recorded from another car showed Ahmed’s erratic driving immediately before the collision.
Police were given the registration number of Ahmed’s car by the motorcyclist and an independent witness.
As the registered owner, he was sent the Notice of Intended Prosecution and asked to declare who was driving his VW Golf at the time.
Ahmed responded by denying he was behind the wheel and provided officers with the time stamped image showing that his car was outside his home at the time of the accident.
But police carried out mobile phone network analysis which showed his phone had been in the area of Capel St Mary when the crash happened.
The court heard how mobile phone footage recorded from another car showed Ahmed’s erratic driving immediately before the collision. Pictured, the part of the A12 where the collision happened in 2019
As a result, police got a search warrant and arrested Ahmed at his home on November 17, 2019.
His CCTV system was seized and proof was found that the time and date stamped on the screenshot image had been changed.
Mandisa Knights, defending, said he had acted with extreme immaturity by trying to cover up for his ‘despicable’ driving.
She added that he had been forced to grow up quickly as he was the main financial provider for his family and principal caregiver for his mother’s ill-health.
Judge Emma Peters accused Ahmed of driving ‘stupidly’ and ‘showing off’ to his friends as they drove to the wedding.
She told him that his actions had ‘struck at the heart of the administration of justice’, and that only a prison sentence could reflect his culpability and the harm caused.
A charge of dangerous driving was dropped after he denied it and pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of careless driving.
Sgt Neil Clarke, of the Roads and Armed Policing team of Suffolk Police, said after the hearing: ‘Careless driving is a criminal offence and this driver showed complete lack of consideration for other road users and the law. Furthermore, perverting the course of justice is an extremely serious offence.
‘The Roads and Armed Policing Team officers worked hard to secure warrants and present evidence to uncover the truth that the driver was at the location at the time of the offence, despite his efforts to prove otherwise.
‘Sayeed Ahmed took measured steps in attempt to cover his tracks and deceive police, which ultimately failed because of the tenacity of the investigating officers.
‘This collision could have ended tragically for the motorcycle rider and we will continue to prosecute those drivers who endanger other road users.’
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