Bournemouth star Jordon Ibe banned from driving and fined £7,500 after crashing £130k Bentley into coffee shop
PREMIER League star Jordon Ibe was today slapped with a 16-month driving ban and a £7,500 fine after crashing his £130,000 Bentley into a cafe before fleeing the scene.
The Bournemouth player's car ploughed into the cafe in Bromley, South East London, causing £15,000 worth of damage and pranging a parked Mercedes in the process.
Ibe, 24, who joined the Cherries from Liverpool for a then club record £15 million fee in 2016, pleaded guilty to driving without due care and attention last year.
He was subsequently found guilty of failing to stop at the scene of an accident at a trial last month.
The footballer, who is thought to earn around £40,000 a week, lost control of his white 4x4 Bentley Bentayga, collided with a parked car and then smashed through the shopfront of The Pantry cafe at about 4am.
He then reversed out his car out of the cafe and sped away from the scene, with CCTV footage capturing him arriving at his gated home at 4.11am.
BANNED FROM DRIVING
Sitting in the dock at Bromley Magistrates' Court sporting a black Balenciaga jacket and a silver earring, Ibe spoke only to confirm his name, address, date of birth and nationality.
He stood motionless as District Judge Catherine Moore banned him from driving for 16 months - and ordered him to pay a £7,500 fine as well as nearly £1,500 in costs, compensation and surcharges.
Addressing Ibe, the Judge - who also gave David Beckham a six-month driving ban last year - said: "You accepted that your driving fell below the standard of a competent and careful driver.
"We have heard about the impact that this has had, and the impact on others.
"You took no further attempts to make contact with the owners of the shop.
"You have heard about the effect that had, and the disappointment they felt with the way you dealt with things. You also took no steps to notify police."
Judge Moore added that Ibe's poor record - he already had ten points on his licence before this latest ban - served as an "aggravating factor" in his sentencing.
You have heard about the effect that had, and the disappointment they felt with the way you dealt with things. You also took no steps to notify police.
Judge Moore
Sarah Dixon, who owns the cafe with her husband, told the court in a written impact statement that Ibe had made no effort to apologise to her, and that she and her husband had suffered a significant loss of earnings in the wake of the crash.
She said: "When we arrived I was shocked at the damage, I thought we had been robbed. I was devastated.
"Financially, I knew that the damage was enough to make the shop close for several weeks. I believed we were going to go out of business."
Her husband had to take time off work, even spending nights in the shop before it had been repaired to ward off thieves.
She added: "He had to sleep there while the shop was insecure, to stop anyone getting in.
"It was closed for six weeks. Since reopening, things have not been the same as we have lost customers to other shops nearby while we were closed.
"He made no attempt to contact us until police tracked him down, and even then it was only through his solicitors.
£7,500 FINE
"I am dismayed that someone who is of such high profile has not even attempted to apologise to us."
In mitigation Ibe's lawyer, Frank Rogers, said his client was a "relatively young and ignorant man" who had been engulfed in "the artificial world of football since the age of nine".
Ibe also apologised to his club and his fans, adding: "I've let myself down."
In a statement read by his lawyer, Ibe said: "Following today's hearing I want to make it clear that I accept full responsibility for my actions and lack of judgement when driving.
"I apologise unreservedly to those whose property I damaged. My insurers met their claims in full after I personally offered to compensate them.
"I want to also apologise to my club, Bournemouth, to my manager, Eddie Howe, to my teammates, my fans and particularly to my family.
"I realise I have let them all down; this is not the example I want to set for others. Most of all, as a highly-committed professional athlete, I know I have let myself down.
"The last 12 months have been difficult and challenging for me on a number of fronts."
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Acknowledging that Ibe has struggled to break into the Bournemouth side this season, and that his contract is due to expire this summer, Mr Rogers said that that had likely contributed to the player's dangerous driving.
Mr Rogers said: "It has coincided with a very turbulent time at Bournemouth. His contract expires, and is future is relatively uncertain."
Noting that Ibe has faced a driving ban in the past, he added: "At the age of 24 he knows that he has to change and he has to change now."
The lawyer also claimed that, in 2016, Ibe had been robbed and had a machete held to his chest while he was driving, adding that he still "does live in some extent in for for his safety" when he is behind the wheel.
