Families plead with 4x4 death crash driver: Hand yourself in

Devoted couple: Greg Stiles and Abigail Dowdy met 18 months ago

The families of two teenage victims of a car crash pleaded today with the 4x4 driver responsible to "do the right thing and hand yourself in".

Lifeguard Greg Stiles, 18, died and his girlfriend Abigail Dowdy, 17, suffered critical injuries and was left in a coma on 17 May.

Thames Valley police believe Mr Stiles's Ford Fiesta careered into a grass verge to avoid a BMW X5 which was overtaking three vehicles before hitting another car on the A4129 in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. The BMW driver failed to stop.

Mr Stiles, from Thame, died at the scene while Ms Dowdy, of Prestwood, Buckinghamshire, was airlifted to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.

Mr Stiles's mother, Maggie, appealed to the BMW driver: "Please do the right thing and hand yourself in so I can sleep at night. We need everyone's help to find out what happened."

Mr Stiles's family said in a statement: "Greg would always think of others before himself and rarely had a bad word to say about anyone; a sentiment that is echoed by all that knew him.

"Outside of work, Greg enjoyed spending time with his girlfriend Abi and his many friends. He also visited the gym regularly and was a Vale of the White Horse motocross club champion; an activity in which he had participated from a young age.

"One of life's real triers, Greg will be sorely missed by all who knew him." The teenage couple were "inseparable" after meeting 18 months ago at a motocross event. Meanwhile, the family of a driver who died with three Londoners in another car after he drove the wrong way up a motorway released a statement today.

They said Zimbabwean student Tauya Marengereke, from Brighton, was an experienced driver and they could not understand what happened. Mr Marengereke, 27, stopped in a lay-by on the M6 near Great Barr in the West Midlands. He was heading south in the early hours of Sunday and had driven through the night to meet his girlfriend.

But he made a U-turn and drove the wrong way up the carriageway, ploughing his hired Ford Fusion head on into a Peugeot 406 carrying four men, three of whom were killed on impact. Police have not released their names but said two were 27 and the third was 18. The fourth man, 23, remains in hospital with serious injuries.

Mr Marengereke's family said: "He has driven for four years. It's really hard to understand what happened. He was the most reliable driver you could want behind a steering wheel."

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