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Faces of dangerous drivers jailed after causing crash which killed elderly woman

These are the faces of two dangerous drivers who have been jailed for causing the death of an 81-year-old woman after "driving competitively" on a Rowley Regis road.

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Jacek Wiatrowski, left, and Arjun Dosanjh admitted causing the death of Surinder Kaur. Photos: West Midlands Police

Surinder Kaur died after she was hit by a vehicle on Oldbury Road on November 13, 2022.

Arjun Dosanjh, 26, was driving a blue Mini at the time whilst Jacek Wiatrowski, 51, was driving a black BMW.

The pair, who didn't know each other, pulled up next to each other near a set of traffic lights before they began driving "competitively".

Both vehicles were travelling at high speeds and said to be "significantly" exceeding the speed limit.

CCTV footage showed Wiatrowski heavily braking as he spotted Mrs Kaur crossing the road.

Whilst he narrowly avoided her, this caused Dosanjh to swerve onto the wrong side of the road, missing the BMW but hitting Mrs Kaur.

Both defendants pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving at an earlier hearing.

At Wolverhampton Crown Court on Monday Wiatrowski of Pine Avenue, Wednesbury, and Dosanjh, of MacDonald Close, Oldbury, were each jailed for six years and banned from driving for eight years.

In a victim statement read out to the court, Mrs Kaur's family said: "Our mum lived a very simple life. She was a deeply religious woman and on the day of the accident she was on her way home from the Gurdwara.

"The days and weeks after mum’s death were really tough; as well as trying to come to terms with our loss we had to deal with an ongoing police investigation.

"My first thought every morning is of mum, my last thought every night is of mum.

"These thoughts are not happy memories, but the thought of the pain she must have experienced in those final moments of her life. These thoughts haunt all of her family.

"We are all trying to come to terms with the loss of our mum, we have all gone through so many different emotions but ultimately we are all just sad.

"Sad that every milestone we celebrate as a family will be filled with sadness as our mum will not be there."

Dt Sgt Chris Ridge, from the West Midlands Police Serious Collision Investigation Unit, described the actions of Dosanjh and Wiatrowski as "dangerous" and "foolish".

"Mrs Kaur was on her way back from her local Gurdwara - the journey she made every day and was killed during her daily routine.

"She was devoted to her faith and family and my thoughts are with her loved ones who have been deeply affected by her death.

"Wiatrowski and Dosanjh did not know each other and were driving competitively – this dangerous and foolish action has cost a life.

"The sentence imposed will never fill the void left in Mrs Kaur's family and I extend my heartfelt condolences to them," Dt Sgt Ridge said.