Roadside cameras captured the moment Billy Stokoe fled the scene after hitting and killing ‘fiercely independent’ great-grandmother Gloria Stephenson in Sunderland on May 16 last year
Chilling footage captured the moment a drugged-up e-biker fled the scene after hitting and killing a great-grandmother on a zebra crossing.
Billy Stokoe, 19, was jailed for six years and nine months after colliding with 86-year-old Gloria Stephenson while riding at speed, high on cannabis and reading messages on a mobile phone in his left hand – despite the left-sided brake being the only one that worked. The force of the impact killed the devoted mother of four and grandmother of 13 instantly in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, on May 16 last year.
Roadside cameras captured Stokoe hitting Ms Stephenson and being thrown from his high-powered £4,000 Sur-Ron Light Bee X bike, which was being ridden illegally on public roads. He was then seen removing his balaclava and running over to see his victim lying on the ground before getting back on the bike and fleeing the scene.
Stokoe was arrested after his mother took him to a police station to hand himself in. His first words were: “Is she dead?”
At Newcastle Crown Court on Friday, Stokoe was sentenced after he previously admitted causing death by dangerous driving, causing death while driving unlicensed and causing death while driving an uninsured vehicle.
He will serve up to half of his sentence before becoming eligible for release on licence and will be banned from driving for five years after his release.
Ms Stephenson’s family spoke of the devastating loss of a “beautiful, intelligent, fiercely independent” great-grandmother with a “zest for life”. She died while walking her daughter’s dog to complete her 10,000 daily steps.
Ms Stephenson, who had been widowed three times, had enjoyed a successful career in the NHS. Her four daughters described her as fit and active, saying she was about to go on a holiday to Lanzarote, where she had a “huge circle of friends”.
Ms Stephenson’s daughter, Lisa Trench, said: “You, on your illegal, defective bike. You, speeding. You, on your phone. You, under the influence of cannabis. Mam didn’t stand a chance.”
Another daughter, Julie Francis, said: “He ran off and left her like she was nothing. I don’t know what he will do in the future, but he will never ever hold a light to our mum. He is just a coward, thinking only of himself. He left her alone to die like she was rubbish in the gutter.”
Ms Stephenson’s family condemned Stokoe’s lack of remorse, telling the court that eight days after killing her, Stokoe went to Wembley to watch Sunderland play and then applied for his bail to be amended so he could go abroad on holiday. They also condemned the fact it took three Crown Court appearances before he entered a guilty plea.
Ms Francis said: “We had to go to Crown Court three times before he admitted his guilt, which I find disgusting. Obviously, it is traumatic for us but it wastes public money and police time. There is no consideration for the community and for people suffering.
“Ten days after he killed my mother, he actually applied to have his bail changed so he could go and see Sunderland in the play offs at Wembley. And then he applied to go on holiday as well. So this young man showed no remorse whatsoever.
“And that just adds to our trauma and our anger really. We have all seen these bikes on the streets and they are a menace. So the law needs to be changed.”
Another daughter, Janine Murphy, added: “Even when we were planning the funeral, he was asking about the holiday he had booked before he killed our mother. It was like it was an inconvenience – ‘I’ve just killed somebody and I need to go on holiday’. That’s not a remorseful person.”
Superintendent Billy Mulligan, of Northumbria Police, who led the investigation, said Stokoe had been seen riding dangerously around Sunderland and weaving through traffic shortly before the collision.
He described it as an “accident waiting to happen”, saying: “These bikes are very fast, they can go from 0 to 60 mph faster than most cars.”
Supt Mulligan said: “He was seen riding the bike at speed for most of the day. Footage before the incident shows him riding without using his hands, without using the brake, weaving in and out of traffic, and going around parked and moving cars.
“Billy ignored the normal route, overtook, and hit Gloria Stephenson on the zebra crossing. The first thing he does is go back, get on his bike and then realise what he has done.
“Members of the public are helping Gloria but he gets back on his bike and leaves the area. CCTV shows him fleeing to an associate’s address, where he hides the bike and walks away as if nothing happened. His own mother tells him to turn himself in. He admitted causing death by dangerous driving.”
