A motorist convicted of causing death by dangerous driving after hitting a cyclist from behind has had his jail term doubled by appeal judges.

Three appeal judges on Friday concluded that a four-year prison sentence handed to Syed Ahmed, 32, of Newham, east London, was "unduly lenient" and increased it to eight years.

Lord Justice William Davis, Mr Justice Morris and Judge Sylvia de Bertodano heard Ahmed had been driving an Audi A8 at more than twice the 30mph speed limit shortly before he hit cyclist Jay Kristiansen, 31, on Romford Road, Forest Gate, east London, in the early hours crash on July 24, 2020.

They were told, at a Court of Appeal hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice in London, how Ahmed had not stopped at the scene of the accident but handed himself into police several days later.

Mr Kristiansen, who lived in Barking, east London, died in hospital soon after the accident, as a result of life-support treatment being ended.

Appeal judges considered the case after Solicitor General Michael Tomlinson mounted a challenge and argued that the four-year jail term handed to Ahmed by Judge Sandy Canavan at a hearing in Snaresbrook Crown Court in August was unduly lenient.

They concluded that Judge Canavan had not considered a current sentencing guideline when jailing Ahmed.

Lord Justice Davis said Ahmed had "ignored the rules" of the road, driven at speeds "significantly in excess" of the speed limit, had not driven in a way appropriate for the weather conditions and behaved in a "reprehensible" fashion after the accident.

Judges heard Ahmed had been convicted of causing death by dangerous driving by a jury at Snaresbrook Crown Court after a trial.

After Ahmed was jailed at Snaresbrook, Acting Detective Sergeant Liz Carrey said: "Our investigation showed that Ahmed had no regard for public safety, with CCTV showing that he had been driving at over 65mph in a 30mph zone.

"After the collision he drove away, leaving Mr Kristiansen with catastrophic injuries, relying on other members of the public to call for help." She had added: "Time and time again we see the devastating impact of dangerous driving."

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/driver-killed-cyclist-newham-prison-sentence-appeal-b1116501.html