Josh Ashworth’s body was found in a ditch along the A52, just outside Grantham, Lincolnshire, by his mother Rachael, who was using the iPhone tracking app to track her son’s recent movements
Josh Ashworth was walking home on the A52 when he died
A mother used an iPhone tracking app to find her son dead in a ditch after he didn’t return home from a night out.
Josh Ashworth, 22, was walking home on the A52 just outside Grantham, Lincolnshire, around 9.30pm on April 22 last year when he was struck by a BMW being driven by disqualified driver Cole Tresidder, also 22.
Lincoln Crown Court heard that Josh was in touch with his family through his iPhone that evening, and when he didn’t return home the next morning, they began searching for him.
Steven Gosnell, prosecutor, said Josh’s family and friends went to the location on the A52 after the locator app on his iPhone showed it was stationary at the scene near Somerby Hill.
Tragically, just after 7am, Josh was found lying face down in a ditch by his own mother, Rachael Ashworth, Mr Gosnell told the court.
Josh was found dead in a ditch by his own mother
The court heard Tresidder fled the scene and failed to report the collision, despite the damage to the BMW he left nearby.
Just before the collision, Tresidder was seen by another vehicle whose occupants believed he had exceeded the speed limit, Mr Gosnell said.
Lincolnshire Police Collision Investigator PC Godfrey Barlow also concluded that Tresidder was driving over 60mph when he met Josh, who was walking in the same direction towards Grantham.
At the time of the collision, Tresidder was banned from driving after being convicted of driving without due care and attention when he crashed into parked cars in Norton Street, Grantham on 8 December 2021.
On that occasion, Tresidder was found to be in possession of 39 packs of cocaine worth up to £1,560 and over £1,000 in cash after attempting to escape from a police car.
The court heard that Tresidder only turned himself in at a local police station around noon on April 23, 2022 after reading reports of a traffic fatality on social media.
Josh’s own mother was the one who discovered his body
Unable to provide officers with a copy, Tresidder said he did not report the collision because he was a prohibited driver and had no insurance.
He said he didn’t know he hit a pedestrian and thought it might be a deer.
The court heard Tresidder called a vehicle towing company at 9:37 p.m. on April 22 to collect the BMW.
In a moving victim statement she read in court, Josh’s mother described the horror of searching for her son and finding him dead.
Mrs. Ashworth turned to Tresidder and said, “Why would anyone leave that beautiful fellow standing by the side of the road?”
She added, “I could have been spared finding my son with these horrible injuries.”
The court heard that Josh died immediately after suffering a fractured skull, but it was some time before his family learned if he was alive for some time after the collision.
Ms Ashworth added: “This haunted me for days until it transpired that Josh died instantly.”
Describing Josh as her “beautiful, complex and loving son,” she added, “My life as I knew it ended on Saturday, April 23rd.”
Josh’s father, Simon Ashworth, added, “I’m so sad I wasn’t there to help my little boy.”
Mr Ashworth added: “Josh would do anything to help anyone. The hole he left in our lives is immeasurable.”
Other moving testimonies were also read by Josh’s best friend, godmother, cousin and older sister, who said, “Losing my brother is something I can never put into words.”
Tresidder, of Springfield Road, Leicester, had admitted a charge of causing death from careless driving and failure to provide a sample.
He also pleaded guilty to driving a black BMW while he was disqualified and had no insurance when the collision occurred.
He also admitted to possessing cocaine and intended to deliver the Class A drug on December 8, 2021.
At the sentencing hearing, Judge Catarina Sjolin Knight said it was reasonable not to expect a pedestrian on that stretch of road.
But Judge Sjolin Knight told Tresidder he backed his decision not to report the collision by allowing Josh’s family and friends to find him.
“With a tracking app on his phone, it was his mother who found Josh in a ditch off the A52,” added Judge Sjolin Knight.
“In her words ‘her beautiful boy dead by the roadside’.”
Tresidder was jailed for 86 months and banned from driving for 77 months. In addition, he must undergo an extended repeat examination.
