Killer 'unaware' Amazon driver was hanging onto van

A man who admitted killing an Amazon delivery driver has told a court he did not know the victim was hanging onto the van as he stole and crashed the vehicle.

Mark Ross, 32, denies murder but has admitted manslaughter after he collided with a parked car at 60mph and "crushed" Claudiu-Carol Kondor, who was holding onto the passenger door, on 20 August last year.

Mr Justice Goss told Leeds Crown Court: "The fundamental disagreement between the prosecution and defendant is whether he was aware, at any time, of the presence of Mr Kondor."

Ross previously told the court he had just wanted to steal the van, and if he had known the 42-year-old was there he would have stopped and fled.

Ross took the van while Mr Kondor was delivering a package to a house in Armley, then hit two cars at high speed on a 20mph street while Mr Kondor held onto the outside of the car, killing him in the second crash.

Mr Kondor, of Sheffield and originally from Romania, suffered 60 external injuries, a fractured skull and bleeding on the brain and died within seconds.

The jury was sent out on Tuesday afternoon to decide if Ross had intended to kill or very seriously harm Mr Kondor, either of which would make him guilty of murder.

James Keeley, defending, said there were "easier and safer, [still] selfish" ways Ross would have thrown Mr Kondor off if he had known he was there and meant to, such as braking suddenly or making a sharp right turn.

He said: "Why choose to intentionally collide, with this very fine margin?

"The risks if he gets it wrong at 60mph [are] that he would cause himself serious injury or damage the van [which he had planned to sell]."

He noted how Ross, who had a "hard upbringing" in care, did not cover his tracks or distance himself from the incident and behaved "as if he thought he had simply just stolen a van".

Ross stored the vehicle outside a friend's cousin's house, went briefly back home to a nearby street the same day, and did not dispose of his clothes.

The court heard Ross had many previous convictions including violent offences, such as "giving someone a black eye" and hitting someone with a pickaxe handle.

He also admitted he had stolen many vehicles previously.

John Harrison KC, prosecuting, presented a list of 22 reasons why Ross would have known the victim was there, including witnesses saying the passenger door was open, which he could not have missed.

Ross previously denied looking to his left towards the passenger side at any point in the journey, which Mr Harrison said was "beyond belief".

He added: "This defendant showed complete disregard and even contempt for Mr Kondor and his life.

"He may regret his decisions now, but they were his decisions."

The trial continues.

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