Driver in court over fatal crash in West End on Christmas Day

A Mercedes driver has appeared at the Old Bailey accused of killing one pedestrian and seriously injuring three others in London’s West End on Christmas Day.

Anthony Gilheaney was allegedly disqualified when he mowed down four men in the area of Shaftesbury Avenue while behind the wheel of a Mercedes-Benz E-Class.

At one point during the incident at around 1am on Christmas Day, the 30-year-old defendant allegedly leaned out of the car towards a couple with a child in a pushchair.

It is alleged he then drove erratically at speeds of more than 60mph on the wrong side of the road through parts of central London.

Upon his arrest later the same day, it is alleged he was found in possession of a small knife in Lincoln’s Inn Fields.

One of the injured men, named by police as Aidan Chapman, 25, died in hospital on New Year’s Eve.

Gilheaney was originally charged with four counts of attempted murder, possession of a bladed article, and causing serious injury while driving while disqualified.

However, following the death of Mr Chapman, he will be formally charged with his murder.

On Tuesday, Gilheaney appeared at the Old Bailey by video-link from Belmarsh Prison for a preliminary hearing before Judge Mark Lucraft KC.

The judge set a timetable for the case, with a plea hearing on March 28 and a provisional trial before a High Court judge at the Old Bailey from December 1.

Gilheaney, from Harlow in Essex, spoke only to confirm his identity and was remanded into custody.

Following Mr Chapman’s death, his parents said in a statement that the loss of their son was “a parent’s worst nightmare”.

They said: “He was a loving, kind, funny soul and the world is a darker place without him. We, his parents, have lost the best part of ourselves.”