Man sentenced to four years for fatal M271 collision

A lorry driver was today jailed for four years after a jury found him guilty of falling asleep behind the wheel and causing a fatal crash. 

Stefan-Alexandru Bloj, 34, of Osborne Road in Southsea, Portsmouth, was handed a four year jail sentence today for causing death by dangerous driving.

He killed 64-year-old David Sullivan after smashing into the back of the his Citroen Relay van on the M271.

Southampton Crown Court heard Mr Sullivan, from Wivelsfield Green, near Lewes, East Sussex, had slowed down as he approached Redbridge roundabout.

But the court heard how Bloj did not slow down and crashed into the back of the van at about 8.30am, on 17 November, 2020.

A trial last month heard from the prosecution that said Bloj had fallen asleep at the wheel, as he had been using his sleep breaks to phone his partner and watch videos and had only slept for five hours in a 24-hour period.

The jury found Bloj guilty and today he was sentenced to four years in prison and has been given a two-year driving ban, with an extended re-test.

Detective Sergeant Cate Paling, of the Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: "Bloj drove lorries for a living and knew the dangers of not taking designated sleep breaks.

"His selfish decision to instead use this time to watch videos on his phone meant he was completely unfit to drive through tiredness, endangering the lives of other drivers as well as his own.

"Our thoughts remain with Mr Sullivan's family."