Mum thought hit-and-run driver killed her five-year-old

The mother of a five-year-old girl struck while scootering on the pavement by a hit-and-run driver has said she thought her daughter had been killed.

CCTV footage shows Kurtis Dwyer, 35, hit Casey Wilson near her school in Cardiff in March 2024.

She escaped serious injury, but her mum Rachel Bancroft said her daughter continues to have nightmares about the crash.

Dwyer, of Clare Road, Cardiff, pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and was given a 14-month prison sentence on Monday.

"I was coming out of the park with my kids and an out-of-control car came out from the junction and pounded into my little girl", Ms Bancroft told BBC after the sentencing hearing.

"I thought she was dead that day.

"The impact has been traumatising for the whole family... physically and mentally draining.

"She's had nightmares, bed wetting, sweats. It's been horrendous."

Judge Simon Mills told Dwyer he had shown "cowardice" by driving away and abandoning his vehicle after driving into Casey on Sloper Road.

Ms Bancroft told the court there was an "angel looking down on her".

She called the sentence "nowhere near long enough".

"He'll be out in a minute, looking at me again and laughing at me again," she said.

"I've got to relive this now for the rest of my kids' lives and my own life."

On 24 March 2024, Casey had been riding her scooter on the pavement just ahead of her mum and brother.

Prosecutor Mari Watkins said Ms Bancroft saw Dwyer mount the kerb and knock her daughter over before driving away, adding it was "miraculous" that Casey was only left with bruising and a limp and not "far worse injuries".

Dwyer, who was driving without a licence, insurance or permission to drive the vehicle, abandoned the car a few streets away.

He called Casey's father a few days later saying "I didn't know I hit your kid" and claimed to have "lost control" after dropping a cigarette.

Dwyer then handed himself into police.

In a victim personal statement, Ms Bancroft said her daughter "has been living with PTSD since the incident and is in daily fear of any cars, crossings or the road in general".

She has now gone from a lively child to one who is "glued to my hip constantly".

"She is short tempered and has numerous outbursts of anger and frustration," Ms Bancroft added.

She added that a loud motorbike going past her house once led to Casey "shaking and screaming and running in distress".

Ms Bancroft added that she and her son also suffered from PTSD.

Dwyer lives near the family, a situation Ms Bancroft said "makes things a billion times worse".

She said she once bumped into him and he "shrugged and sneered at me".

Dwyer has a long criminal record with numerous motoring offences and had driven while disqualified since the incident, the court heard.

Ms Bancroft said she had decided to read her own victim impact statement in court to emphasise the pain Dwyer, who was known to her and her family before the crash, had caused her family.

"I wanted to look at him in his face and tell him that you nearly killed my daughter that day and potentially my son as well.

She added it "could have been ten times worse", and said Dwyer "hasn't shown any remorse".

"Even today in court he couldn't stand up and say 'I'm sorry for what I did'," she said.

Judge Simon Mills said that for a child "one of life's little joys" is to ride a scooter and this had been "destroyed" for Casey due to Dwyer's decision to "drive a large vehicle in a completely ridiculous manner".

Dwyer hit Casey after trying "a dangerous overtaking manoeuvre" and the judge said her "comparatively minor physical injuries" could have been "very serious injuries or she could have been killed".

Judge Mills said Casey "should be playing with friends and instead she is going to counselling".

Dwyer will also be disqualified from driving for three years after he serves his prison sentence.