A Nigerian-British taxi driver has been sentenced to six years in prison after falling asleep at the wheel and killing a man in Surrey, England.
Kolawole Erunkulu, 45, from Bexleyheath, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving following the collision on the A23 in Merstham.
The crash happened shortly before 6:30am on 17 August 2025. Surrey Police said Erunkulu’s Audi moved across the carriageway and struck 59-year-old Philip Dray, who had stopped his Volkswagen safely in a layby to take a break.
Dray was opening the driver’s door to get back into his vehicle when he was hit. He died at the scene.
Driver had worked about 53 hours in three days
Evidence gathered during the police investigation showed the extent of Erunkulu’s working hours before the fatal collision.
Surrey Police said data from his employers and footage from inside his vehicle showed he had driven for around 53 hours during the three days leading up to the crash.
His longest period of rest between drives was about seven hours, three days before the collision. Other breaks included one lasting approximately four hours and two of around two hours.
Immediately before the crash, Erunkulu had been working as a taxi driver for around 12 hours, taking only minor breaks.
Camera captured moments before collision
Footage from inside Erunkulu’s car became an important part of the investigation.
Police said the recording showed him entering a “microsleep”, a very short period of sleep that can last only seconds. During that period, his Audi moved across the carriageway and into the layby where Dray was standing.
The vehicle continued for another 10 seconds before Erunkulu stopped at the next layby.
CCTV footage also showed the Audi crossing the white lines separating the carriageway from the layby before correcting its course after the collision.
Six-year prison sentence and eight-year driving ban
Erunkulu was charged with causing death by dangerous driving in March 2026 and pleaded guilty when he appeared in court in June.
He was sentenced at Guildford Crown Court on 25 August 2026.
The court jailed him for six years and disqualified him from driving for eight years. He will also have to take an extended driving test if he later applies to regain his licence.
Surrey Police said the sentence would have been nine years had he been convicted following a trial rather than pleading guilty.
During sentencing, Judge Lees said the footage showed that Erunkulu was extremely tired and had continued driving despite his condition. She also noted that he was driving commercially and could have been carrying a passenger.
Victim remembered as a careful driver
Dray’s family described him as a gentle and dependable man who cared deeply about others.
His sister said he had spent his life as a careful and conscientious driver who took the safety of passengers and other road users seriously.
His partner described him as her soulmate and spoke of the enormous void his death had left behind.
The family agreed to the release of footage from Erunkulu’s vehicle as part of efforts to highlight the dangers of driving while fatigued.
The Trivane angle: fatigue is a road-safety issue
The case goes beyond one driver’s conviction. It highlights the danger that severe fatigue can create when people whose livelihoods depend on driving continue working without enough rest.
Surrey Police said accumulated sleep loss can seriously reduce a driver’s ability to remain alert and react safely. The risk can become particularly serious during the early hours of the morning, when the body’s natural drive to sleep is stronger.
For taxi and other professional drivers, the case also raises questions about working patterns and personal responsibility. Earning more by remaining on the road for longer can come at an enormous cost when adequate rest is sacrificed.
Dray had stopped his own journey to take a break. The driver who struck him had been working for hours with insufficient rest.
That contrast makes the central lesson of the case particularly clear: tiredness behind the wheel should never be treated as something a driver can simply push through.
Source: Surrey Police, 1 September 2026
Surrey Police – Man jailed after falling asleep at the wheel and causing fatal collision
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