Fundraiser held for V crash trio

Andrew Lucas was one of the three who died in the M25 crash

A fundraising evening dedicated to three friends who died in a car crash on the way home from a music festival has been held in a Kent nightclub.

Andrew Lucas, 21, Paul Smith, 26, and Joanna Walker, 18, all from Maidstone, died at the scene of the accident on the M25 in Essex on 21 August.

They were on their way home from the V Festival in Staffordshire.

Mr Lucas's school friend, Craig Bennett, organised Saturday's event at The Loft in their home town.

Three families

The money raised is to be split three ways and given to the three families.

"They can pass it on to charities of their choice or use it to help with funeral costs," said Mr Bennett, who attended Valley Park Community School in Maidstone with Mr Lucas.

He said he had expected up to 600 people to attend the evening, which was aimed at helping friends deal with the loss of the three music fans.

"It has been a hard few weeks, but this is a good way to send them off and move on," he said.