Man denies death crash 'gamble'

Mr Wells is on trial after the three friends died in the crash

A driver accused of causing the deaths of three young people in a crash in Aberdeenshire has denied he "gambled" during an overtaking manoeuvre.

John Wells, 20, told the High Court in Aberdeen the crash was his fault.

However Mr Wells, of Turriff, denies causing the deaths by dangerous driving of Stuart Johnston and Emma Foster, both 19, and 24-year-old Jonathan Gray.

He was driving a Ford Escort when it was in collision with a Nissan Micra on the Turriff to Fyvie road in 2005.

Ms Foster, of Silverhillocks, Banffshire, and Mr Gray, of Aberdeen, had announced their engagement just days before the crash claimed their lives. Mr Johnston was from Millbrex, Fyvie.

Car headlights

Mr Wells is alleged to have dangerously overtaken another vehicle into the path of the Micra, causing the deaths of the three friends in November.

Mr Wells, 20, told the third day of the trial he was responsible for the accident because he pulled out to overtake and hit the Nissan Micra coming in the opposite direction.

He said: "I put my right hand signal on to move out, I turned the steering wheel, coming out I saw the headlights of a car.

"By the time I broke to slow myself I saw both headlights of the car but my wheels locked and I slid across the road."

The crash happened on the Turriff to Fyvie road

He said that it had been a matter of seconds between the time he started the manoeuvre and the point of impact with the Micra.

He got out of the car and dialled 999 from his mobile phone.

Defence counsel Norman Ritchie asked Mr Wells: "Is your position that it was your fault in the sense that you were executing a manoeuvre and the accident happened as a result of that?"

"Yes," he replied.

Under cross-examination, advocate depute Drew McKenzie put it to Mr Wells: "You were committed to an overtake and gambled in the hope you would get past, but saw a car coming and collided with it."

"I did not gamble on the overtake," he replied.

The trial continues.