Cheikh Senghor, 40, pictured at Reading Magistrates’s Court today, destroyed a bus shelter in the dramatic high-speed collision
A father-of-two who was hit by a speeding bus and was sent 45 foot through the air has forgiven the driver, admitting he was glad he avoided jail.
Cheikh Senghor, 40, of Wallingford, Oxfordshire, was filmed mowing the speeding bus into Simon Smith when he accidentally pressed the accelerator in June last year.
He also destroyed a bus shelter in the dramatic high-speed collision in a busy part of Reading town centre.
Shocking CCTV footage showed lorry driver Simon Smith flying through the air after being struck by the out-of-control bus before calmly getting up and walking into a pub in June.
Senghor admitted dangerous driving today at Reading Magistrates’ Court and was told he was lucky there were not more people in the ‘very busy’ area.
Senghor was given an eight-month suspended jail sentence at Reading Crown Court.
Mr Smith, 49, told the Sun: ‘I’m glad he didn’t go to prison. He didn’t set out to do that to me.’
At court, Senghor said: ‘I am terribly sorry, it is the last thing I wanted to happen.
‘I wish you a speedy recovery if that is not the case already and a return to normal life.’
Simon Smith (pictured) said he felt ‘very luck to be alive’ following the collision in June
Judge Paul Dugdale said of the CCTV footage: ‘I, like most of the nation, have watched this video.
‘I could not make out what route this bus was meant to be taking.’
Referring to Simon, Dugdale added: ‘It is nothing short of a miracle that he got up and walked straight into the Purple Turtle.’
Mr Smith only suffered minor bone fractures and scratches, but the court heard he was psychologically scarred by the experience and was still off work.
Shocking CCTV footage showed lorry driver Simon Smith flying through the air after being struck by the out-of-control bus in Reading town centre
Mr Smith only suffered minor bone fractures and scratches, but the court heard he was psychologically scarred by the experience and was still off work
The Purple 17 bus, operated by Reading Buses, was heavily damaged in the crash, which took place on Gun Street in Reading on Saturday, June 24.
Ann Sawyer-Brandish, prosecuting, told the judge that the victim had suffered several fractures and internal bruising.
She added: ‘It is a busy area and the vehicle could not be brought under control very quickly. A number of people who were on the bus said it was also travelling at excessive speed.’
The Purple 17 bus, operated by Reading Buses, was heavily damaged in the crash in June
The lorry driver got up following the horror crash (left) before walking into the pub (right)
Alexander Dos Santos, defending, said the type of bus being driven had a tendency to surge forward when drivers hit the accelerator pedal.
Senghor, of of Wallingford, Oxfordshire, admitted dangerous driving at court today
He said Senghor wanted to send his apologies to the victim, adding: ‘Rather than dealing with it appropriately by hitting the brakes, he hit the wrong pedal and instead the bus accelerated.’
District Judge Davinder Lachhar said the problem with the buses would have been familiar to those driving them and rejected that this was a mitigating factor.
She said: ‘It is a very busy part of the area and it is lucky that not more than one person were there. There is high culpability here I would have thought.’
She told Senghor: ‘You will be remanded on unconditional bail to appear in Reading Crown Court for sentencing as my powers are insufficient.’
At the time of the crash, Mr Smith told The Sun: ‘I heard some banging behind me and I was hit from behind. Then you can see what happened from the CCTV.
‘The video says it all. I didn’t tense because I didn’t know it was coming. After it I just wanted to get somewhere safe. I feel very lucky to be alive.’
Mr Smith walked into the Purple Turtle pub after the crash. Its co-owner Daniel Fraifeld said at the time: ‘I think he pretty much got up, brushed himself down and then an ambulance came and took him to be checked.
‘He got looked over and didn’t have any lasting injuries – but he’s covered in scrapes and bruises. He then got released from the hospital and I think he just went for a pint to relax.’
Mr Fraifield also told BBC South Today: ‘It looks like the bus has gone out of control – it’s almost gone into turbo, it’s just suddenly sped up, doubled its speed if not more. Absolutely shocking.
‘I just can’t believe that Simon got up, dusted himself up and walked away from it. It’s a miracle that he’s alive.
‘We called Simon a few hours after the day of the accident and, yeah, he was in a lot of pain. He was still in shock basically, couldn’t believe what had happened.’