Car thief jailed over death of agency chef

15 August 2019 by
Car thief jailed over death of agency chef

A car thief who killed an agency chef in Edinburgh by hitting him with a stolen vehicle has been sentenced to five years and three months in prison.

Declan Mayes, 21, (pictured) had pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving after crashing into chef Lionel Simenya in a stolen Peugeot 207 on 7 March 2019.

Passers-by called emergency services at 3:50am but Simenya was later pronounced dead at the scene. Mayes was apprehended on the 16 March, having abandoned the vehicle and fled after the incident.

Yesterday a judge sentenced him to more than five years in prison, as well as banning him from driving for eight years and seven months.

Simenya had been working as an agency chef at a nearby restaurant. In September last year he had won recognition from his agency, Blue Arrow Recruitment, for "always picking up extra shifts, always get[ting] great feedback from all our clients" and working "incredibly hard".

Detective inspector Stuart Alexander from Police Scotland's Major Investigation Team said: "The actions of Declan Mayes while being the wheel of a vehicle caused the death of Lionel Simenya and robbed a family of their son, brother and uncle.

"This was a complex investigation, which involved collaboration between the MIT, road policing and local officers in Edinburgh, to establish how Lionel sustained his injuries and thereafter bring those responsible to justice.

"I am grateful to all of those who worked on this inquiry, including agencies who assisted us in communicating with Lionel's family in both Burundi and Belgium.

"I'd also like to thanks the Simenya family for their continued support of our investigation and the dignity they have conducted themselves with, during an extremely distressing period of their lives.

"My hope is that, now sentence has been passed, they can begin to move on with their lives."

Man convicted after death of Edinburgh agency chef>>

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