Coward killed cyclist in Saltley then fled to Pakistan, had kids and worked as taxi driver

Andel Goulbourne, aged 59, was struck by a BMW travelling twice the 30mph speed limit on Washwood Heath Road in Saltley in July 2020

A coward motorist who killed a cyclist built a new life thousands of miles away after fleeing the country within hours of the crash. Kashif Khan married, had kids and worked as a taxi driver while on the run.

He was doing more than double the 30mph limit on Washwood Heath Road in Saltley when he ploughed into 59-year-old grandad Andel Goulbourne.

He fled the scene, booked a flight to Dubai and then moved to Pakistan. There, he remained and lived a seemingly normal life until July this year when he flew back to Birmingham Airport and was arrested.

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Meanwhile the family of beloved Mr Goulbourne were left with a huge hole in their lives and a lack of closure. Khan, 28, of Parkhouse Drive in Erdington, admitted causing death by dangerous driving and was sentenced to six years at Birmingham Crown Court on Thursday, September 19.

He was also banned from driving for 12 years and ten-and-a-half months, marking the second time he had received a road ban. Judge Kerry Maylin told Mr Goulbourne's family the sentence was to 'mark the criminality and not put a 'value' on his life.

She told Khan: "You moved on with your life, married and had two children and lived freely in Pakistan. It leads me to have concerns what you were doing in Pakistan.

"You were clearly not consumed with regret as you worked as a taxi driver in Pakistan driving people around when knowing you had been involved in a fatal traffic collision."

The crash happened at around 11.20pm on July 30, 2020. Khan was driving a BMW which did not even belong to him. It had been loaned to someone else - ironically following a separate road collision - who in turn let the defendant drive it.

Witnesses described how Khan 'zoomed' past them at speed as he undertook them on a slip road at the Saltley Gate Island before cutting up a taxi driver as he merged back on to Washwood Heath Road. Moments later he struck Mr Goulbourne, who was travelling in the opposite direction on his bicycle and was turning into Clayton Road.

A collision investigation concluded Khan was doing between 61 to 64mph at the time. CCTV showed Mr Goulbourne being flung into the air. The court was told his body came to rest 50 metres from the spot where he was hit.

Khan fled the scene. Judge Maylin told him: "You must have realised. You got out of your vehicle and walked towards the scene. Then, perhaps on seeing the carnage your dangerous driving had caused, you cowardly left the scene leaving Mr Goulbourne to members of the public who had come out of their own properties."

Less than 20 hours later he was on a flight to Dubai. A few months later Crimestoppers issued a wanted appeal with a £5,000 reward for information on the then 24-year-old''s whereabouts.

Little over a year before the incident, in May 2019, Khan had completed an extended retest following a conviction for dangerous driving in 2017 which earned him a six-month sentence and 15-month driving disqualification. Mr Goulbourne's sister, Carol Gordon, said the footage of the collision and the image of his 'lifeless body lying in the road' haunted her every day.

She recalled that on his 56th birthday he had told her all he wanted from life was to 'be around my family', a wish she said was 'cruelly taken away from him'. Ms Gordon added: "Every time I see a cyclist on the road flashbacks paralyse me for a split-second then I secretly wish the cyclist a long life, safety and happiness. That's all I wanted for my brother."

Speaking on behalf of Mr Goulbourne's children, his daughter Samantha Higgins told Khan: "You showed no remorse and only thought of yourself, choosing to flee the scene and ultimately the country, leaving my dad at the side of the road battling for his life.

"You avoided apprehension for four years. Now you are finally being held accountable for your actions. As a family we hope you use the time you are given to reflect on the incredible pain you have caused.

"Our dad's death left a huge void in lots of people's lives especially our lives and those of his grandchildren who will now grow up without a father figure."

Balbir Singh, defending, said Khan 'panicked' after the collision and left the country 'terrified', but he 'built up the courage' to return to the UK voluntarily and plead guilty to his charge. Mr Singh said: "You have his age at the time, 24. You have his regret and remorse."