'Their blood is on your hands': Heartbroken sister of one of three teenage boys killed in 100mph crash condemns 'cocky' driver who inhaled laughing gas at wheel seconds before he lost control and hit tree
The heartbroken sister of a teenage boy who died in a horror crash has condemned his 'cocky' driver friend who inhaled laughing gas seconds before impact.
Thomas Johnson, 19, breathed nitrous oxide in through balloons while zooming at faster than 100mph on a 30mph road in Marcham, Oxfordshire in June last year.
The force of the smash 'ripped the roof off' the car and all three victims - Daniel Hancock, 18, Ethan Goddard, 18, and 17-year-old Elliot Pullen - suffered 'unsurvivable injuries' and were pronounced dead at the scene, Oxford Crown Court heard.
Johnson was jailed at the court this afternoon for nine years and four months, soon after admitting three counts of causing death by dangerous driving.
The sister of victim Elliot Pullen told the court of her sorrow in a heart-wrenching statement and added that Johnson had the boys' 'blood on his hands'.
Mia Pullen said: 'The day Elliot died, our world stopped. In the weeks following, it stood everything I had to get up in the morning.
'My only sibling is gone and Tom is to blame. I will never see him get married or travel the world. Every day I think about how he is gone.
'I think about how much you hurt him. You disregarded his life by driving so fast, just for a boost of ego.
Thomas Johnson, 19, arrives at Oxford Crown Court on Wednesday for the hearing where he pleaded guilty to causing the death of three teenagers by dangerous driving
Elliot Pullen, 17, was one of the boys who died in the car crash on the road in the Oxfordshire village of Marcham
Family of the victims speak outside court. Johnson was jailed this afternoon for nine years and four months, soon after admitting three counts of causing death by dangerous driving
'I not only lost my brother, I lost myself.'
Ms Pullen went on to tell the convicted Johnson he had 'taken everything from her' and 'blood is on your hands'.
She added: 'Through all of this, I am grateful your family won't have to know those feelings. You have to live with what you have done.
'I hope this is a lesson, dangerous driving kills.
'I hope you are never allowed behind a wheel again.
'I hope his death was not in vain.'
Mobile phone footage from inside the car before it crashed showed the boys laughing and passing nitrous-oxide canisters to the front, while Johnson inhaled a balloon.
The victims' families called Johnson a 'cocky teenage boy' who was showing off and urged others 'not to be that driver who shows such disregard for their friends' lives'.
Footage filmed on a mobile phone inside the car moments before the crash in Marcham, Oxfordshire, showed the group laughing and passing nitrous-oxide canisters to the front
Daniel Hancock (left) and Ethan Goddard (right), both 18, died in the crash on June 23 last year
The driver Thomas Johnson and front passenger could also be seen with balloons in their mouths in an Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) photo released by Thames Valley Police
Alex Hancock (Daniel's father) and other members of family and friends gather outside Court as statements were read after Thomas was sentenced to 9 years and four months for the deaths of his friends
Johnson was in tears as the family statements were read with Elliot Pullen's aunt adding the now-jailed driver had 'killed three people that night' and it was a 'miracle' he had survived.
Passing sentence today, Judge Emma Nott told Johnson: 'You will be forever defined by your teenage mistakes but you will also have a chance to rewrite this definition.'
The judge also told Johnson that his facial disfiguration as a result of the crash on the A415 will be a 'permanent reminder' to himself and others that he killed his friends.
Daniel's parents cried as they said all they had left of their son was his ashes.
Reading a victim impact statement to court, his mother said she missed her son with 'every fibre of my being'.
She continued: 'Every night when I lock the door and I don't need to wait for Daniel to be home safely, it hurts. Every meal when I only need four plates, not five, it hurts.
'When I have no-one to make an extra portion of dinner for because I know he'll be hungry later, it hurts.'
She said her son was now a 'pile of ashes, in a box no bigger than a shoebox' and that she stares 'in disbelief' at his name on the box.
Thomas Johnson was asked in a police interview (pictured) after the crash whether he had ever taken nitrous oxide. He responded: 'No, not this year. I remember doing it once last year with a group of friends before I could even drive but I don't have any recollection after that'
The mother of Ethan Goddard (pictured) told the court he was studying to be an engineer and was waiting to hear back from a job interview when he died. She sobbed as she said: 'Ethan has left a massive hole in our lives that can never be filled, and we miss him every single day'
His father also read out a statement in which he said 'all we have left of our eldest son is his ashes' and pointed to a pendant around his neck in which he said some of Daniel's were encased.
Footage filmed on a mobile phone inside the car moments before the crash showed the group laughing and passing nitrous oxide canisters to the front.
Johnson - who survived with serious injuries - could be seen with a balloon to his face, while the vehicle's tyres could be heard screeching as it drifted around a corner.
The driver and front passenger were also pictured with balloons to their mouths in an Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) photo released by Thames Valley Police.
CCTV footage showed the car overtaking another at more than 100mph, and police said the vehicle's electronic stability control had been deliberately turned off.
Johnson claims to not remember what happened, and was asked in a police interview after the crash whether he had ever taken nitrous oxide, reported Sky News.
Johnson replied: 'No, not this year. I remember doing it once last year with a group of friends before I could even drive but I don't have any recollection after that.'
Asked if he remembered its effect, he said: 'It made my head feel dizzy.'
A family photo issued by Thames Valley Police of Elliot Pullen, who was among the victims
In court today, prosecutor Neil Moore showed the court several short video clips recovered from the phones of those who had been travelling in the car in which a balloon, typically used to inhale the gas, could be seen 'in the mouth of the defendant', he said.
Mr Moore said: 'It's quite clear on the evidence that the defendant had been taking nitrous oxide from the canister with the assistance of a balloon to inhale it for some considerable time before the collision.'
One canister of nitrous oxide was found in the driver's footwell and a further eight were found in the boot of the car, the court heard.
A forensic investigation found that, at the time of the crash, the car was travelling at up to 87mph along the stretch of road where the speed limit was 30mph, and no mechanical defects, road or weather conditions contributed to the accident, the prosecution said.
Johnson claims to not remember what happened, and was asked in a police interview after the crash whether he had ever taken nitrous oxide, reported Sky News.
A forensic investigation found that, at the time of the crash, the car was travelling at up to 87mph along the stretch of road where the speed limit was 30mph, and no mechanical defects, road or weather conditions contributed to the accident, the prosecution said.
The court heard that data from a location sharing and safety app from Mr Goddard's phone showed that shortly before Johnson lost control of the vehicle, it was travelling at speeds of more than 100mph.
Mr Moore told the court that effects of the gas include 'disorientation' and 'general impairment' and an expert who had provided evidence concluded that 'taking the drug is not compatible with driving a car safely and the concurrent use while driving is very dangerous due to the rapid onset of the affects'.
Johnson, of Shrivenham, spoke to confirm his identity and to enter his guilty plea on all three counts in front of members of the victims' families.
Passing sentence, Judge Emma Nott told Johnson he will be 'forever defined' by his 'teenage mistakes' and that at the time of the crash, he was 'highly impaired by the consumption of drugs' and had 'lost control' of the vehicle in 'a prolonged, persistent and deliberate course of dangerous driving'.
She said: 'In short, while inhaling nitrous oxide and having disabled essential safety features, showing off to your friends and doubtless encouraged by their presence, you accelerated beyond your ability to control your car and sought to 'drift' around the narrow bend into Marcham - and all for teenage thrills.'
As a result, the judge added, 'your three passengers will never see beyond their teenage years and you move out of yours significantly and permanently disabled'.
The judge went on to list some of the injuries suffered by Johnson during the crash as she jailed the 19-year-old, including traumatic brain injuries, a collapsed lung, cracked ribs and the permanent loss of sight in one eye.
She told him that his 'visible facial disfiguration' would be 'a permanent reminder to you and those who meet you that you caused the death of your friends'.
Johnson had been in an induced coma after the crash and suffers from amnesia and 'moderately severe' depression and anxiety, she added.
A photo issued by Thames Valley Police of damage to Johnson's vehicle after the collision
'The severity of your brain injuries mean you have no memory of that night', the judge told him.
In mitigation, Mark Haslam told the court that his client Johnson was 'genuinely' remorseful and that his immaturity 'clearly paid a part' in his decision-making that night.
Johnson's 'life-changing injuries' and the 'burden' of the knowledge he has killed three people he knew should be taken into consideration in his sentence, he added.
Mr Haslam said: 'The defendants' tears in this case, and there have been many and there will be many more - are not crocodile tears, he is genuinely incredibly distressed and remorseful.'
Daniel's family begged people not to be a 'passenger of such a driver'.
'Please learn from this, an opportunity that the boys were not fortunate enough to be given,' they said.
Meanwhile, Ethan's father, Robert, said: 'He's ruined everyone's life, he's taken three, ruined his own life, devastated ours, just for showing off.'
Elliot's sister, Mia, 20, added: 'I know he's just a cocky teenage boy, I know he's not an awful person but he made some awful decisions and I really hope that he feels guilty for what he's done.
'This is his fault, he's done this, he's killed them and I hope it stays with him forever.'
A canister containing nitrous oxide which was found at the scene of the crash in June 2023
And Elliot's parents said they had been 'sucked into a world of grief, sadness and pain that we still cannot begin to process'.
They added: 'As his parents, we feel a physical longing and pain that we never got to hold Elliot and say our goodbyes.'
In a statement after the sentencing, Crown Prosecution Service lawyer Bill Khindey said: 'Thomas Johnson's disregard for the safety of others that night was clear.
'His dangerous driving had devastating consequences - tragically cutting short the lives of three young men. This is a responsibility he must reflect on as he serves his time in prison.
'We recognise that no sentence can alleviate the pain suffered by the families of Elliot, Ethan and Daniel, and our thoughts remain with them.'
Detective Sergeant Tony Jenkins, of Thames Valley Police's serious collisions investigative unit, said 'any impairment while driving is inherently dangerous'.
He added: 'In this case, the use of nitrous oxide took place over a number of hours and even up to 30 seconds before the crash consumption was taking place.'
Flowers tied to a tree next to the road in Marcham, Oxfordshire, where the crash happened
The families of all three teenagers released tributes to them in June 2023 after the crash, with Ethan's family describing him as a 'very loving son, protective brother, caring grandson, much-loved nephew, kindest boyfriend and loyal friend'.
They added that he was 'very passionate about the things he loved' and was 'hard-working, enjoyed his part-time job, while studying engineering at college'.
The family of Daniel said at the time that their 'worst fears were realised so tragically', adding that they 'take some solace in the fact that Daniel lived every day to its fullest, surrounded by friends who became family'.
They added: 'To his friends, he loved you all. Please don't take risks that you can't come back from. We loved Daniel beyond words and always will.'
And Elliot's relatives said he was their 'gorgeous, bright and talented son, a dearly loved brother, grandson, nephew, and cousin'.
They also said his passions included 'football, especially Liverpool FC, learning to drive with his Dad, riding motorbikes, eating out, attending live events and spending time with his friends, who were so important to him'.
Possession of nitrous oxide - sometimes referred to as 'hippie crack', 'gas and air' or 'NOS' - for recreational use was made criminal offence shortly after the crash, in November 2023.
