Death crash street racer jailed

The judge said Anguige had caused the deaths

A man who caused the deaths of three girls while racing another driver down a street has been jailed for 10 years.

Gemma Cost, 15, Ursula Alokolaro, 16, both from Batley, and Natalie Donlan, 16, from Dewsbury, died in the crash in Huddersfield in September 2006.

Adam Anguige, 26, of Batley, West Yorkshire, was convicted of causing death by dangerous driving.

Bradford Crown Court heard of his bravado and "appalling driving". The other driver suffered brain damage.

Fellow driver James Houston, 27, from Huddersfield, was charged with the same offence but was deemed not fit to stand trial because he lacked the mental capacity after being injured in the crash.

Anguige and Houston became involved in a street race after Houston - who was driving his Ford Fiesta with the girls as passengers - drove up behind Anguige and flashed his lights as passengers made rude gestures.

'Cat-and-mouse'

Anguige claimed in court that a beer can had been thrown at his car and then he "set off in pursuit" of Houston.

During a cat-and-mouse series of overtaking exchanges at 60mph in a 40mph zone, Mr Houston lost control and ploughed into a lorry while overtaking Anguige, the court was told.

Judge Christopher Prince said to Anguige: "You took up that gauntlet, you took up that invitation.

"You set to lay blame entirely on the driving of Houston and absolve yourself of all responsibilities".

He added that Anguige had engaged in "fast, dangerous, aggressive and competitive driving" which caused the deaths of the girls.

Anguige's barrister Peter Joyce QC said Anguige had become a "sacrificial lamb".

He told the court: "The real, most serious villain of the piece, from whose car those girls were taken dead, is effectively, to a very great extent, going to escape, whereas Adam Anguige is going to pay in full".

Anguige was sentenced to 10 years in prison for each of the three counts, to run concurrently, and disqualified from driving for 10 years.

The judge told him: "No sentence that I have the power to pass could ever reflect sufficiently the tragic loss suffered by the parents and families of these young ladies who themselves lost their lives and had so much to offer the world."