Coggeshall Road crash driver Kurt Beagrie jailed for 4 years

Kurt Beagrie, 23, ignored speed warnings before losing control of his Ford Fiesta and leaving the carriageway in Coggeshall Road on August 2, 2020.

His passenger and close friend Erikas Eicas, 19, from Halstead, was killed as a result of the severe chest injuries he suffered when the car ploughed into a tree at 1.40am.

David Hewitt, prosecuting, told Chelmsford Crown Court that Beagrie had 108mg of alcohol per 100ml of his blood. The legal limit is 80mg.

Tragic crash - the incident took place in Coggeshall Road near Earls Colne (Image: Google)

Beagrie was airlifted to Addenbrookes Hospital in Cambridgeshire and placed into a medically induced coma after being freed from the wreckage, having suffered a traumatic brain injury.

The court heard a Snapchat video uploaded by Mr Eicas, who worked in Colchester, moments before the crash showed the car being driven at speed in the middle of the road.

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It was then crashed into a tree at 80mph as the road, which was a 40mph limit, curved to the right.

Mr Hewitt said Beagrie and Eric had played golf together on the morning of the crash before celebrating a friend’s birthday at the Drapers pub in Earls Colne, drinking all afternoon and into the evening.

Much loved - Erikas Eicas (Image: Family handout)

Judge Christopher Morgan said: “I have no doubt you have reflected that your decision was a bad one and led to the death of your friend.

“You can’t undo the past and nor can this court.

“The speed was grossly excessive for the road, the speed limit and [the road’s] condition.”

Beagrie, of Castle Lane, Castle Hedingham, admitted causing death by dangerous driving and was jailed for four years and disqualified from driving until 2028.

Poignant - tributes still remain at the scene in Coggeshall Road (Image: Google)

Quentin Hunt, mitigating, said: “After the pub closed the friends went for some food and then from there the fatal journey began.”

He said Beagrie was the designated driver that night and had broken his own “golden rule” of not drinking and driving.

He is now receiving rehabilitation from the 17 major injuries he suffered but has been able to return to playing golf.

Eric’s mother told the court she has not received an apology from Beagrie.

In a tribute read to the court, she wrote: “In the past our house was filled with joy, liveliness and laughter and now our house is an empty, quiet, miserable place to be.

“Eric was a beautiful boy inside and out. He was smart, kind, respectful and helpful, very friendly and generous.”

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