M62 crash: HGV driver Nicholas Liever jailed for Karen McDonagh death

An HGV driver who sent text messages in the moments before a fatal crash has been jailed.

Karen McDonagh, 51, died when Nicholas Liever's lorry smashed into her car and two other vehicles on the M62 near Huddersfield in 2019.

Police found the trucker, who admitted causing death by dangerous driving, tried to delete data from his phone.

Liever, 49, from Fishtoft, Lincolnshire, was jailed for four years and four months at Leeds Crown Court.

Mrs McDonagh, from Goole, was driving a Volkswagen Passat on the eastbound carriageway when Liever's HGV smashed into her vehicle, an Iveco Vehicle Transporter and a Volkswagen Touareg on the morning of 5 September.

West Yorkshire Police said collision investigators discovered Liever had exchanged a series of messages beforehand, sending his last text around the time of the crash.

Liever told police he was not distracted at the time and had claimed the pile-up was unavoidable, but entered a guilty plea in court on Thursday.

He was also disqualified from driving for four years and two months.

Det Con Jenny Stanley said: "This is yet another example of how dangerous using a mobile phone at the wheel of a moving vehicle can be.

"Liever has admitted responsibility for causing this collision and now has some time to reflect on his actions, which resulted in the death of a much-loved family member and impacted on the lives of those involved in what was a traumatic incident.

"Our sympathies remain with the family of Karen McDonagh and we hope that this outcome will give them some comfort."

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