Extradited driver jailed for horror Wigan crash that cost passenger his legs

Buhus Sorin-Mihai, 20, of Barnsley Street, Gidlow, will spend 28 months in a young offenders' institution after he pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving, driving without a licence, and driving without insurance at Bolton Crown Court.

Sorin-Mihai has also been disqualified from driving for four years and this will be extended by 14 months upon his release.

In July 2020, Sorin-Mihai was driving a blue Volkswagen Polo along Walkden Avenue when he overtook a line of traffic waiting at a red traffic light, driving through the light and colliding with a Mercedes C220, which was driving through the junction.

Following this collision, the car which Sorin-Mihai was driving spun into Walkden Avenue before colliding with a white Vauxhall Astra which was waiting at the traffic lights.

As the car was spinning, a 32-year-old man - who was a passenger in Sorin-Mihai's car - was ejected from the Polo and collided with traffic lights outside Sherrington's bar, which caused serious injury and resulted in him having to have both of his legs amputated in hospital.

A 53-year-old man and a 50-year-old woman who had been in the Mercedes were both treated for minor whiplash injuries.

As the investigation was ongoing, Sorin-Mihai fled to Romania and failed to appear at court in December 2020.

GMP officers from the Serious Collision Investigation Unit worked alongside the Romanian embassy and GMP's Project Advenus to obtain an extradition warrant, which was executed and led to Sorin-Mihai being arrested in Romania in August 2021 and extradited back to Manchester the following month in September to face court.

PC Adam Scott, of GMP's Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: "Sorin-Mihai's reckless and careless actions resulted in a man losing his limbs, which will undoubtedly have a significant impact on him for the rest of his life.

"Sorin-Mihai is selfish and put innocent road users at extreme risk with his dangerous driving manoeuvres which ultimately could have resulted in a very grave outcome. He then tried to escape the consequences of his actions by fleeing to Romania.

"I hope today serves as a lesson that you cannot escape justice. This was a challenging investigation, but the Serious Collision Investigation Unit has been dedicated in following all leads and available avenues to ensure that Sorin-Mihai was not able to evade retribution."

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