Crawley family’s lives ‘ripped apart’ by death crash driver

The family of a Crawley mother-of-two who died after her boyfriend crashed his car said their lives had been ‘ripped apart leaving a wound that will never fully heal’.
Lisa Watling SUS-140321-161323001Lisa Watling SUS-140321-161323001
Lisa Watling SUS-140321-161323001

Minesh Parbat, 36, of Gregory Close, Maidenbower, was this morning (August 28) jailed for seven years for causing the death of Lisa Watling by dangerous driving while over the limit for alcohol.

In a statment, Lisa’s family said: “Our lives have been ripped apart leaving a wound that will never fully heal, no matter how much times passes.

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“However, the two real victims are Lisa’s children, her 11 year-old-daughter and 7-year-old son. They have been deprived of the right to be raised by their mother. They will never be able to cuddle up in their mum’s bed on a lazy Sunday morning again. They will never have that soft comforting voice that they know and love whisper goodnight, safe in the knowledge that when they wake up in the morning she’ll be there to greet them.

“That dream died along with many others when Minesh got into that driver’s seat. As a family we feel relief that some kind of justice has been seen as he has been found guilty and jailed. It feels like a very small step towards gaining a degree of closure. However, it is bitter-sweet, there is no glory in it. For Lisa’s children there is no justice. Their mum will not be coming home with us today. She is gone forever and there is no justice in that.”

Lewes Crown Court heard that Parbat was driving his BMW Z3 sports car west along Crawley Avenue at 1.40am on March 9 2014 when it left the road and collided with a fence.

His girlfriend, Lisa Watling, 28, who was a passenger, in the car tragically later in hospital from her injuries.

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Parbat, who was also over the drink-drive limit, denied the charge but a jury found him guilty after a six-day trial. The alcohol level in his blood was 102 milligrammes in 100 millilitres of blood - the legal limit is 80 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood.

He also received a three-and-a-half year driving ban which he will serve when released from prison.

Sergeant Clare Kenward said: “Parbat has blamed everyone but himself throughout and has caused the family of Lisa Watling a huge amount of distress. I hope the verdict and sentencing goes some way to easing their pain.”

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