Driver deliberately hit and killed motorcyclist in 'random' and 'unprovoked' attack

A man killed a lone motorcyclist by deliberately driving into him in a random and unprovoked attack.

Paul Barrett repeatedly drove through the Wiltshire village of Dinton at speeds of 80mph before he spotted lone motorcyclist Ryan Brindley on 22 December last year.

The dashcam inside Barrett's Volkswagen Touran then captured him turning around to follow the bike before deliberately crashing into it.

Mr Brindley, 43, was then carried along the road on top of the car before falling to the ground. He died at the scene.

The two men had never interacted before the crash, which Wiltshire Police say appears to be entirely random.

Barrett, of White Road in Mere, appeared at Winchester Crown Court today (20 December) where he pleaded guilty to manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility.

The 42-year-old has been remanded in custody ahead of sentencing on a date yet to be fixed in January.

The court heard Barrett claimed to be travelling to Wilton for a pre-arranged appointment.

But dashcam showed him repeatedly driving on Dinton's 30mph roads at speeds of 80mph.

After spotting Mr Brindley, he drove at high speeds along the B3089 Hindon Road to catch up with him and smashed into the back of his bike.

Detective Chief Inspector Simon Childe from Wiltshire Police's major crime investigation team said: "The killing of Ryan Brindley appears to have been an entirely random and unprovoked incident.

"When we were able to watch the dashcam footage from the car Barrett was driving, it was clear that he was driving around the Dinton area and then changed direction to follow Ryan when he spotted his motorcycle.

"We do not believe they were known to each other, or that there had been any previous interaction between the pair.

"It seems that Ryan was targeted entirely at random.

"I would like to pay tribute to Ryan’s family who have suffered such a sad loss, and thank them for the support they have shown during the police investigation.

"It is almost exactly a year to the day that Ryan was taken from them in the cruellest of circumstances and my thoughts remain with them at this extremely difficult time.”