A young driver who had been downing beers before crashing his van then fled, leaving his best friend’s brother fighting for his life with catastrophic injuries.

Oliver Hewitt had been drinking in his local pub in Burham when he got into his Nissan Primaster van with his pal’s brother, Joseph Jones.

But he lost control of the vehicle in Pilgrims Way, Aylesford.

The van ended up in a hedge the wrong way around, and Mr Jones, who was just 17 at the time, suffered catastrophic injuries to his left leg - which later had to be amputated - when he ended up embedded in the van’s dashboard.

A court heard that if it hadn’t been for a quick-thinking off-duty police officer who came across the smash, Mr Jones may not have survived as his leg was bleeding so much, the officer had to use a tourniquet to stem the blood loss.

However, Hewitt, who was just 19 at the time of the smash, had run off because he was in “complete shock” and had not realised the “seriousness of his passenger’s injuries”. He called a friend and went to his home, where his friend turned his phone off.

As a result, Hewitt, now 22, was not arrested until later that same morning. He wasn’t found to be over the legal limit, but was later charged with causing serious injury by careless driving.

Hewitt, of Court Road, Burham near Rochester, admitted the offence when he appeared in court in February and, at the time, he was placed on an interim ban while a pre-sentencing report was carried out. He returned to Medway Magistrates’ Court on May 1 to hear his fate.

Prosecutor Dylan Bradshaw told the court the incident happened just after midnight on July 22, 2023, and that it had changed the life of Mr Jones “forever”, because he later had to have his leg amputated below the knee.

He added: “The charge is one of the most gravity for the complainant as his life has changed forever and I must say, in the 37 years I’ve been doing this, I’ve not met a family with such dignity; there is no bitterness, or nastiness, from his dad who is here in court, only concern for his family and this has been catastrophic for them.”

He went on to tell magistrates Mr Jones had finished on the day of the smash and had gone to the pub at about 5pm, after discovering his dad and brother were there with his sibling’s best friend, Hewitt.

The prosecutor added: “He decided to have a couple of beers and joined his brother and the defendant, and they were all chatting. He didn’t know Hewitt that well and had met him about seven times.”

He added that Mr Jones thought that he’d had about seven beers and in a statement he made, he said he felt very intoxicated when he left the pub with Hewitt at about 11pm, and only remembered waking up in hospital and initially couldn’t remember anything about the smash.

Mr Bradshaw added: “About three months later, he started to remember and could recall being in a van being driven by the defendant.

“He remembers going along the road and the vehicle clipped the kerb and he remembers there was no other traffic about, but recalls being worried about the defendant’s manner of driving.

“His iPhone Pro 14 called the emergency services as he lay injured, as these devices are designed to do that, and the off-duty police officer saw his injuries and saved his life.”

Magistrates then heard a statement from the officer, Roland Hill, who said he was returning home after a shift when he came across the crash at about half-past midnight.

He said he saw the van in a hedge facing the wrong direction from where it had travelled from and that there was a lot of damage to the vehicle but there was no driver inside.

The statement added: “The passenger’s left knee had an open fracture and there was a lot of blood loss, which was on the road.”

PC Hill said he thought the injured man might die because of the amount of blood he was losing and the serious trauma he’d suffered.

He went to get his kit bag to grab a tourniquet to stop the bleeding, and as he applied it, he said he remembered Mr Jones screaming in pain.

The statement also said he then got in the driver’s side of the van and could see Mr Jones’ other leg was under the dashboard, and that he also had other injuries.

Mr Bradshaw added: “This guy is a hero in this case. What he did saved his life, and it’s what Hewitt should have done.

“Hewitt left as he didn’t want to be breathalised, but we can’t prove that. He was arrested later, but he left the young man bleeding to death.”

Magistrates also heard Mr Jones was taken to King’s College Hospital, where he had to have his left leg amputated below the knee. He also suffered injuries to his spleen, had eyesight problems, a fractured pelvis, other serious wounds to his left leg, as well as two wrist fractures.

The prosecutor added: “Mr Jones’ life has changed forever, but there is a lack of vindictiveness [from him and his family] and they all live in the same village.

“He and his family are decent and he is trying to rebuild his life and he is now 20 and is trying to navigate a normal life without a limb, and his parents are a credit to him.

“Hewitt made no comment in interview, but made a reference to the location [of the crash], but refused to answer questions.

“We believe he was impaired, but that’s just speculation as he got away, but he has no previous convictions.”

The court also heard that a specialist crash insurance firm was fighting for compensation for Mr Jones, and that the claim was still going through.

Hewitt, who was unrepresented in court, told magistrates he was sorry.

He added: “I am sorry and since the crash happened I have wanted to say that, but my bail conditions didn’t allow that.

“I think about it every day, and I would like to change what happened, but I can’t. I understand the impact it’s had, I do understand that.

“I am genuinely sorry and I have changed as a person [because of this]. It’s been eating away at me and I lost my job, but that’s nothing compared to what my best friend’s brother has lost.

“I made a mistake and there is nothing I can do. I hope that in time, we can all move on.”

When he was asked by magistrates why he walked away from the crash, Hewitt replied: “I was in complete shock, I didn’t realise the seriousness of his injuries. I phoned a friend and went to his home and he turned my phone off until the next day.”

Hewitt also told the court his dad had managed to get him another job, which he now gets picked up for as he lost his licence, and that he now earns about £600 a week and was still living with his mum.

Magistrates told him they had no doubt the offence passed the custody threshold but as he had no previous convictions and had pleaded guilty at the first opportunity, they were prepared to suspend the sentence as he had also shown genuine remorse.

As a result, Hewitt was jailed for 18 weeks for the offence, but the term was suspended for 24 months.

They also ordered him to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work and pay Mr Jones £6,000 compensation out of his own pocket, despite the other claim going through.

He was also banned from driving for five years.

The chairman of the bench said: “This is the longest driving ban I have issued in the 25 years I’ve been a magistrate and if you breach that, you could be imprisoned.

“You have to behave yourself and this has had a lifelong impact on Mr Jones’ life. I can’t imagine how traumatic it’s been for him and his family, but by pleading guilty, you also saved him from giving evidence. “

The bench also thanked Mr Jones’ dad for the way he had conducted himself at court and also said they would write a letter so that hopefully PC Hill gets honoured for saving Mr Jones’ life.

Magistrates also ordered Hewitt to pay the compensation back at a rate of £250 a month.