Drink driver, 21, who killed father-of-three in horror smash posted heartless Facebook message saying he was ‘PMSL’ just days later
Joshua Jeffrey, 21, fled the scene after smashing into taxi driver Liaqat Mahmood died before being found hiding in the base of a divan bed
A DRINK-DRIVER who killed a dad of three in a horror smash posted a heartless message saying he was "p***ing myself laughing" on Facebook thread announcing the funeral, a court heard.
Joshua Jeffrey, 21, fled the scene of the crash which injured his passenger - twin brother Ryan Jeffrey - and killed taxi driver Liaqat Mahmood.
He was arrested hours later after he was found hiding in the base of a divan bed in Keighley, West Yorks, and later released on bail, the jury was told.
Six days after the fatal crash, Mr Mahmood's employer, 1st Choice Private Hire, announced details of his funeral arrangements on Facebook.
Commenting on the post 16 hours later, Jeffrey wrote: "PMSL. I did this. I was the driver."
Bradford Crown Court heard Jeffrey initially said Ryan was behind the wheel of the black Rover estate that smashed into Mr Mahmood's blue Vauxhall Vectra at 1.15am on December 25, 2015.
Ryan was unconscious at the scene and taken to Leeds General Infirmary with a head injury and a suspected fractured hand but has since recovered.
Mr Mahmood, 33, had to be cut from his vehicle. He suffered a cardiac arrest and died the same night.
Jailing Jeffrey for eight years, Judge David Hatoon QC said his decision to drive that night had decimated the lives of Mr Mahmood's family.
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He said: "For a considerable amount of time you displayed no remorse and you posted a disgusting message on Facebook."
Prosecuting, John Bull told the court Jeffrey, from Keighley, was attended to by a nurse at the scene who noticed a strong smell of alcohol coming from the vehicle.
Jeffrey pushed the nurse aside and was aggressive and abusive, threatening, "If you don't get off me, I'll mash your face in".
Jeffrey staggered off and when another woman took his arm, he said: "Touch me again and I'll knock you out."
He left the scene and was arrested at 2.40am hiding in the base of a divan bed at an address in Keighley.
Mr Bull said Jeffrey was drunk, had cuts to his face and was limping.
He told the police he was not in the car but a chunk of glass fell out of his pocket when he was taken into custody.
He was transported to Bradford Royal Infirmary where he was found to have 126 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood. The legal limit is 80.
Six days after Mr Mahmood's death, 1st Choice Private Hire, based in Keighley, posted a Facebook announcement saying there would be some disruption to their service while his colleagues attended his funeral.
Sixteen hours later, Jeffrey posted a message on the page, saying: "PMSL. I did this. I was the driver."
The court was told the letters stood for "p*** myself laughing".
The court heard Shazia Nureen, Mr Mahmood's wife, felt she had lost her "soulmate".
In a victim impact statement read out to the court, she said: "Liaqat was my first love and will be my last.
";He was always sending cards with flower petals and spoiling me.
"Liaqat was my soulmate. When he died, I died too."
Mr Mahmood was a dad to two young boys and a baby girl - believed to have been just months old when he died - and had worked for the taxi firm for about four years.
Jeffrey pleaded guilty to causing Mr Mahmood's death by dangerous driving.
The court heard he was uninsured and had no driving licence.
An accident investigator concluded the Rover's headlights were not working at the time of the collision.
Both vehicles were straddling the central white line but no excessive speed was involved.
Defending Jeffrey, Tim Capstick said he was very remorseful and publicly apologised to the family of Mr Mahmood.
He told the court Jeffrey took the wheel to prevent his brother Ryan from driving after both had been in the pub.
Mr Capstick said: "He drove only a very short distance before the crash and was not speeding.
"He turned on the car headlights and did not know they had been damaged earlier that day."
Jeffrey was also banned from driving for eight years.
It comes after another drink driver was banned from the roads after claiming he was going to rescue his daughter from "killer clowns".
Daniel Hood, 40, was more than three times over the legal limit when he got behind the wheel before being stopped by police after veering across lanes of traffic in the early hours of the morning.
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