Moment motorist, 55, was caught driving with a cyclist on his BONNET – as he is spared jail
- Shocking footage shows Ahmed Al-Rawi driving into a cyclist on a Swindon road
- The cyclist screamed “Stop!” before police arrived and arrested the driver
- Al-Rawi was found guilty of dangerous driving and given a suspended sentence
Shocking footage shows a road rage driver who rammed a cyclist onto his bonnet and had to be dragged from his car by police ‒ yet the motorist was spared jail with a suspended sentence.
Ahmed Al-Rawi, 55, was caught repeatedly driving into the victim after he clipped them further down the road and an argument ensued.
The unnamed cyclist is heard screaming “Stop!” in the video as the motorist drove two or three car lengths with the victim on his bonnet.
Shortly afterwards, Al-Rawi is dragged from his Nissan Primera by police during the incident in Swindon, Wiltshire on July 18, 2020, and was arrested on the scene.
He pleaded not guilty to one count of dangerous driving and was convicted by a jury after just under four hours of deliberations in June his year.
Al-Rawi has been spared jail however, after he was dealt a 12-month sentence suspended for 18 months.
He has also been instructed to pay the victim £500 compensation, has been banned from driving for a year and must re-complete his driving test.
The perpetrator, who is a former Iraqi national, has said he suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from torture he endured in his home country.
Judge Richard Parkes QC asserted that, while the offence “clearly passes the custodial threshold”, Al-Rawi posed “absolutely no danger to the public”.
During the trial in June, Winchester Crown Court heard how Al-Rawi initially clipped the victim on Wood Street and the two later became “enthralled” in a verbal altercation.
Ahmed Al-Rawi repeatedly rammed into a cyclist and drove with him on the bonnet for around three car lengths
Al-Rawi threw the victim’s electric bike out of the way of his car, but the victim remained standing in front of his vehicle to stop him driving further.
He began to drive anyway, forcing the cyclist on top of his car and not stopping for several car lengths down Devizes Road.
Prosecutor Leigh Hart explained: “The defendant I believe kicked or threw the bike out of the way, and [the victim] remained in the street in front of the bonnet.
“Some verbal words were exchanged and the defendant ended up driving away, resulting in [the victim] being carried on the bonnet for about three car lengths.
“Officers intervened and stopped and arrested the defendant, who disputed the driving was dangerous.”
Al-Rawi was arrested on the scene and later found guilty of dangerous driving, for which he was given a suspended sentence, ordered to pay £500 to the victim, banned from driving for a year and ordered to re-take his driving test
In his police interview and in the trial, Al-Rawi of High Ground in Tadpole Garden Village explained about his PTSD.
Ms Hart said: “[He] thought he was going to be attacked, so wanted to go away.”
She added that the victim’s electric bike that Al-Rawi hit and later threw away was damaged.
Defence barrister Gareth James told the court that Al-Rawi managed to escape Iraq, came to the UK and claimed asylum.
Al-Rawi claimed that he had given the cyclist “plenty of space”, but the judge said the jury were likely to have “rejected” this argument.
Emergency services were quickly on the scene as seen in dramatic footage of the incident
He added: “Driving at someone is always dangerous and driving on once he hit your bonnet is plainly a dangerous thing to do and could have resulted in a serious injury to [the victim].
“This is clearly an offence which passes the custodial threshold.”
That said, he suspended the custodial sentence, so Al-Rawi may never send any time in prison.
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