A lorry driver distracted by pornographic images on his phone just moments before causing a fatal motorway collision has received a decade-long prison sentence.
Neil Platt, 43, from Bootle in Merseyside, was handed the 10-year term at Preston Crown Court on Friday after admitting to causing death by dangerous driving.
The court heard how Platt had been extensively using his mobile phone throughout his journey, accessing multiple social media platforms whilst operating his heavy goods vehicle.
His dangerous behaviour resulted in a devastating crash that claimed the life of 46-year-old Daniel Aitchison, a father of two from Liverpool.
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The incident occurred on May 17, 2024, on the M58 motorway near Skelmersdale, Lancashire, when Platt's lorry went into the back of Mr Aitchison's stationary vehicle at approximately 1pm.
Traffic had come to a standstill near junction four of the westbound carriageway following police implementation of a rolling roadblock due to reports of a pedestrian on the motorway.
Mr Aitchison's Hyundai Kona had been motionless in lane one for approximately 60 seconds when Platt's HGV slammed into its rear.
The lorry driver, travelling at 54mph, applied his brakes merely 35 metres before impact - just 1.5 seconds before the collision.
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Neil Platt in the seconds before the collision on the M58 motorway
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Platt was distracted by pornography images on his phone just seconds before he killed father of two Danny Aitchson
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The force propelled Mr Aitchison's vehicle into a tanker ahead, causing the Hyundai to burst into flames upon impact.
Emergency services pronounced Mr Aitchison dead at the scene.
The intensity of the fire left his vehicle unrecognisable, with family members later revealing their anguish at waiting weeks for DNA confirmation before they could hold his funeral.
Despite initially claiming to officers that he never touched his phone, in-cab footage revealed Platt had been continuously interacting with his device throughout the three-hour journey from Dumfries to Liverpool.
Dashcam footage captured him repeatedly reaching for his phone mounted on the dashboard, scrolling through WhatsApp, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube.
Platt held his head in his hands following the collision
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Neil Platt was jailed for 10 years after pleading guilty to causing the death of Mr Aitchson
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Most damning was his activity on X, where photographs of naked women appeared on his feed in the seconds preceding the fatal impact.
For 45 seconds before the collision, Platt glanced at the road only fleetingly whilst engrossed in his phone.
When questioned by police, he maintained he had only checked his satellite navigation for journey times.
Judge Ian Unsworth KC delivered a scathing assessment of Platt's conduct, condemning his "arrogant and selfish attitude to driving" as "quite breathtaking".
Daniel Aitchison was pronounced dead at the scene
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The judge emphasised that Platt had "willingly and without any excuse chose to ignore the laws of the road".
"The blunt reality is you travelled well over 100 miles in what was sometimes a highly distracted state.
"In short, you were a multi-tonne accident waiting to happen," Judge Unsworth stated.
The judge expressed disbelief at Platt's recklessness, saying: "It beggars belief that while in charge of that multi-tonne vehicle you were looking at social media and scrolling X in which some of the content was pornographic in nature."
Platt will serve two-thirds of his sentence in custody and faces a seven-year driving ban upon release, followed by an extended driving test.
Kerry, Mr Aitchison's partner and mother to their children Ella, 17, and Jack, 10, revealed she was speaking to him when the collision occurred.
"I was on the phone to him, we were having a normal conversation about daily life," she said, describing how the call abruptly ended.
"I feel angry that he has lost his life in such a way especially as he was coming home from work."
He didn't do anything wrong, he was just coming home to me and the kids. I loved Danny with all my heart and life will never be the same again," she stated.
His mother Jeanette described her eldest son as "witty and cheeky", calling the decision to use a mobile phone whilst driving an HGV "utterly crazy".
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