March man Tomasz Zylinski jailed for causing death and serious injuries when drink-driving on A47

A drink-driver who caused a head-on collision which killed one man and left three seriously injured has been jailed for eight years.

Tomasz Zylinski, 48, of Chapel Street, March, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving, two counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and driving a vehicle while above legal limit when he appeared at Cambridge Crown Court on Monday (February 6).

He had been driving his Mercedes Vito along the A47, close to Thorney Toll, when he ploughed into another Mercedes at around 11.50pm on June 11 last year.

The other vehicle was being driven by Shahrose Nawaz, 29, from Crawley, West Sussex, who died at the scene.

Its front passenger, aged 36, spent several weeks in an induced coma after suffering a ruptured aorta and two rear passengers, both in their early 20s, sustained serious injuries.

In the moments after the collision, Zylinski tried to restart his engine and was described by a witness as “stinking of alcohol”.

He failed a breath test, providing a reading of 110mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath - more than three times the legal limit of 35.

A police investigation found Zylinksi had been driving towards Wisbech when he veered into the oncoming carriageway, causing the fatal crash.

Several motorists recalled seeing Zylinski driving "erratically" in the minutes leading up to the collision. He was seen performing a U-turn on the A47 and another witness saw him almost veer into the path of an oncoming lorry.

One man urged his girlfriend, who was driving behind Zylinski’s van, to keep a good distance as he feared they were following a drink-driver.

He then saw Zylinski speed up and narrowly avoid a head-on collision with an oncoming vehicle before hitting Mr Nawaz’s car.

Zylinski was jailed for eight years and disqualified from driving for 64 months, and was ordered to undergo an extended driving test when his ban comes to an end.

DC Niall Hamshere, from Cambridgeshire Police's serious collision investigation unit, said: “Yet another life is lost due to a drink-driver. This horrifying case has brought so much heartache to the victims and their families.

“Zylinski knew he had consumed alcohol but selfishly had no regard for the safety of others.

“Drink driving is illegal, dangerous and truly ruins lives. People can help us make the roads of Cambridgeshire safer for everyone by confidentially reporting others they suspect of driving while under the influence.”