Man sentenced for moving bikes after fatal crash

Image caption, Connor Graham was sentenced at Newcastle Crown Court

A man who moved two motorbikes to thwart a police investigation after his friend was killed in a crash has been sentenced.

Connor Graham, 27, his friend Jack Armstrong and another man were riding three bikes which crashed into a car in Seaton Delaval, Northumberland, on 13 September 2022, Newcastle Crown Court heard.

As Mr Armstrong lay fatally injured in the road, Graham moved his and his friend's bikes to an alley and gave a backpack containing cannabis to a passing driver he knew, the court heard.

He was jailed for six months, suspended for a year, with 100 hours unpaid work, after admitting perverting the course of justice and possession of a Class B drug.

Judge Penny Moreland said the crash was a "serious one" and "there were matters which could not be investigated because the motorbikes had been moved".

A letter was read to the court from Mr Armstrong's parents in which they praised Graham for being a "hard-working and respectful young man".

The court heard Mr Armstrong had been his best friend and Graham blamed himself for his death, adding he had moved into the deceased's home and was looking after his dogs.

Judge Moreland said Graham, of Seaburn View in New Hartley, Whitley Bay, had learnt a "very harsh lesson" and she took into account the "upset and distress" caused by Mr Armstrong's death.

Graham, who did not have a licence or insurance at the time of the crash, was banned from driving for a year.

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