Scots stock car racer 'swigged from bottle of vodka' before killing Navy veteran in crash
23.02.2023 - 19:01
/ dailyrecord.co.uk
A stock car racer who had been drinking killed a Royal Navy veteran before fleeing the scene. Marc Fortune, 28, was behind the wheel of his 4x4 pick up when he ploughed into the back of a Vauxhall Meriva driven by John King.
The 63 year-old's car was forced off the road and ended up spinning down an embankment on the A92 near Cowdenbeath in Fife. John - who had served in the Royal Navy for 25 years - never survived the crash on September 12 2020.
A young boy and a baby in the motor were also hurt, but luckily survived. Fortune - who had earlier been spotted swigging vodka at a stock car meeting - drove off later telling a friend: "My mum is going to kill me."
A judge heard it was instead the "remarkable courage" of the boy injured in the crash who brought the emergency services to the scene late at night. First offender Fortune now faces a lengthy jail-term after he today pled guilty to a charge of causing death by dangerous driving.
Prosecutor Richard Goddard KC told how Fortune was involved in racing stock cars mainly at a track in Lochgelly, Fife. He had been there on the night of the incident as a spectator.
Mr Goddard told the High Court in Glasgow: "He was seen to take a full sized bottle of vodka from the passenger seat of his Mitsubishi Barbarian L200. He was seen to pinch his nose and drink 'a good few mouthfuls'.
Fortune was described as if he was "tipsy". Despite this, he later drove off in his 4x4 and headed on the A92. John meantime was on the same road on the way to collect a relative from work.
One child was in the front passenger seat with the younger in a baby seat in the back. John was in the inside lane when he was suddenly struck at the back by Fortune's vehicle.
This caused the Vauxhall to spin, hit a
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