UK
‘Dangerous and reckless’ driver who killed pregnant ex-Hollyoaks star Frankie Jules-Hough in 123mph M66 crash jailed for 12 years
A driver who killed a pregnant actress and her unborn baby and left two children in a coma has been jailed for 12 years.
Adil Iqbal had been driving with one hand on the wheel holding a phone with his other to record himself, while clocking speeds of 123mph on the M66 motorway in Greater Manchester in May.
Mum-of-two Frankie Jules-Hough had stopped on the hard shoulder due to a tyre puncture with her two sons and nephew in the car.
Iqbal, 22, was veering through traffic, tailgating and undertaking other vehicles before his BMW 140i swerved, hit a crash barrier and eventually smashed into Ms Jules-Hough’s Skoda Fabia at an estimated 92mph.
Former Hollyoaks star Ms Jules-Hough, who was making a call, then uttered a “blood-curdling scream”, a Manchester court heard.
Frankie Jules-Hough was killed along with her unborn daughter
The 38-year-old was 17 weeks pregnant with her first daughter Neeve and sustained unsurvivable brain injuries.
The former Hollyoaks actress died two days later having never regained consciousness, as did her daughter.
Her nine-year-old son, Thomas Spencer, and young nephew Tobias Welby were left in a coma suffering serious brain injuries and their long-term outcomes remain uncertain, the court heard.
Both spent weeks in intensive care after the crash.
Her two-year-old son suffered minor injuries.
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Relatives of Ms Jules-Hough watched dashcam footage and video from Iqbal’s phone as it was presented to the court before he was sentenced.
Iqbal from Accrington, Lancashire had managed to free himself from his car before people tried to help the trapped family until emergency services arrived.
He admitted two counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and one count of causing death by dangerous driving of Ms Jules-Hough.
‘Devastation of a family’
Sentencing him, Judge Maurice Greene said: “She was killed as a result of the most indescribable reckless driving by you Adil Iqbal, leading to the devastation of a family.”
Detective Constable Richie Hughes said: “I truly hope that the sentencing of Adil Iqbal who is a dangerous and reckless individual – brings her family and loved ones some form of closure.
“Iqbal’s actions that day were nothing short of appalling. He knowingly and willingly chose to drive his car at those speeds with little regard for other drivers on the motorway at the time.”
Actors from Hollyoaks had paid tributes to Ms Jules-Hough, who played the character Jess Holt in the Channel 4 soap in 2000 and 2001.
She had also appeared in Merseybeat, Heartbeat, Where The Heart Is and Wire In The Blood.