Family of nine-year-old Radwan Uddin killed by speeding car say their world has been 'torn to pieces'

 
The family of Radwan Uddin aged 9 boy are angry at the sentence passed to the driver who only got 21 months in jail for killing the nine year old. The driver was travelling at twice the speed limit. Picture From: Abu Ahmed, Uncle of the deceased. It is free to use. Ref: Nigel Howard
David Churchill21 November 2013

The family of a nine-year-old boy killed by a speeding driver today said their world had been “torn to pieces” after the motorist was jailed for just 21 months.

Radwan Uddin was riding on the handlebars of his older brother’s bike near their home in east London when Ibrahim Waseem, 23, smashed into them at almost double the speed limit.

Marks & Spencer worker Waseem, who was not insured, was doing 39mph in 20mph Woodhouse Grove in East Ham when he lost control of his car on a speed bump and ploughed into the two brothers.

The impact was so hard that Radwan smashed in to the silver Mazda’s windscreen and was thrown into the air before landing in the middle of the road, the court heard.

Waseem, of East Ham, admitted causing death by careless driving and was jailed yesterday at at Snaresbrook Crown Court.

Radwan’s family described the sentence as “shocking”.

Father Joshim Uddin said: “We have just shut down from the world. We feel torn to pieces. It is a double blow. We have lost a son, brother and nephew and at the same time we have no justice.

“He was a happy child and always had a smile on his face. He loved his family, enjoyed playing football and we were so proud of how well he was doing at school.

“He had his whole life ahead of him, but he and our family have been failed.”

Uncle Abu Ahmed, 25, an accountant from Whitechapel, said he was seeking advice on behalf of the family to push for a review and lengthier sentence.

He said: “For me it isn’t over. I want justice to be done. I won’t stop until we get that. We would have liked to have seen at the minimum five years in prison.

“It’s absolutely ridiculous. We have been told ten months and he’s up for parole and could be free.

“I burst out of the court room I was so angry. Our family had faith justice would be done, but we’ve been failed. It’s shocking.”

Waseem, who was convicted of driving without insurance in 2008, fled the scene and dumped his car nearby but turned himself in at Freshwater police station later that evening.

Although Radwan was riding the handlebars while his brother peddled, Mr Ahmed said the driver should “have known better” than to speed while uninsured, claiming his nephew “may still be alive today” if he stuck to the 20mph limit.

Radwan’s cousin Azhar Uddin, 21, said: “It’s a joke. He should have gone down for life. If you take someone’s life, it should mean prison for life.”

Waseem was also disqualified from driving for at least 12 months. Radwan, who went to Kensington Primary School, had two older brothers, 17 and 14, and two older sisters, 19 and 11.

Judge Judith Hughes QC, sentencing, said: “The fact is that you Waseem were going too fast and if you had been going less quickly the consequences might have been different.

"Clearly the speed and having no insurance are aggravating features but I accept you are extremely remorseful and take full responsibility for what has happened.”

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