Pregnant woman lost baby boy after hit-and-run

A pregnant care home worker who was “thrown into the air” in a hit-and-run crash lost her baby son shortly afterwards, a court has heard.

Renju Joseph, 31, was struck on a pedestrian crossing in Bamber Bridge, near Preston, by a Toyota Prius which was being driven at high speed on 29 September 2024.

Preston Crown Court heard Ashir Shahid was estimated to be travelling at between 58 and 71mph on Station Road – where the speed limit is 30mph – in wet conditions.

The prosecution said that after Mrs Joseph, who was five months pregnant, was rushed to hospital with head and spinal injuries “it also became apparent that the life of her unborn child was in severe jeopardy”.

Prosecutor Emma Keogh told the court: “An emergency C-section had to be carried out in an attempt to save the unborn child’s life.

“The placenta had ruptured and Mrs Joseph had bled quite heavily.

“Her child was born that evening but sadly he only survived for a few hours before passing away.

“This was her very first pregnancy with her husband who she married about five years earlier.”

Healthcare assistant Mrs Joseph was walking slightly behind two colleagues on the crossing at about 19:50 BST while on their way to work a night shift.

A motorist travelling in the opposite direction said the Prius driver seemed to increase speed about 15m away from the crossing and then swerved away from the two pedestrians.

The pregnant woman was hit and “thrown into the air for quite some distance” before she tumbled and rolled into the car, the witness said.

Ms Keogh told the court: “It was very clear from footage in both the lead-up and the aftermath that the Toyota was driven at speed.

“It was clear that throughout the journey the driving by Ashir Shahid left a lot to be desired.”

Video clips recovered from his front seat passenger’s mobile phone show the pair laughing and singing to music while the car was being driven erratically and at speed.

The passenger was also seen to put his feet out of the window while the driver removed both hands from the steering wheel.

Minutes after the collision the Toyota was abandoned in the nearby village of Lostock Hall.

The court heard that it was later moved on to a flatbed truck and driven to Farnworth, Greater Manchester, where it was found days later by police.

Shahid was arrested in Kirkham, Lancashire, after he had spent several days lying low at a friend’s house in Accrington.

While he refused to comment when interviewed by police, his phone browser history from the night of the collision revealed he searched for “charge for hit and run human”.

A video clip on his Snapchat account showed him singing along to Shaggy’s hit song It Wasn’t Me and laughing.

Shahid, of Windsor Road in Walton le Dale, Preston, pleaded guilty in June to causing the death of Mrs Joseph’s baby by dangerous driving.

He also admitted causing serious injury to Mrs Joseph by dangerous driving.

Shahid will be sentenced on Friday along with a 17-year-old boy who pleaded guilty to assisting an offender.