A bodyguard ploughed his boss's uninsured £1m supercar into railings after accidentally pressing down on the accelerator while moving his seat, he claims.
Andy Danso, 43, lost control of the Pagani Zonda as he drove the 214mph vehicle back from its MOT on behalf of Chinese businessman Jen-Te Chen, also known as Kenny.
He ended up crashing the rare car - regarded as one of the world's most desirable - into a fence on an industrial estate in Wembley, north west London, causing 'thousands' of pounds of damage.
In 2009, the same car was crashed into an electricity pole in Aberdeenshire, after the then owner Gareth Jones let a 'world famous racing driver' take it for a spin.
Danso has now been fined £1,000 after being convicted of driving without due care and attention and driving without insurance.
Handing down the sentence at Willesden Magistrates' Court, District judge Denis Brennan said: 'You were driving a high-performance vehicle with a top speed of 214mph.
'Finding the seat was uncomfortable, because you were too close to the steering wheel, you continued on the journey.
'Whereas a reasonable and prudent driver would have pulled over you didn't and as far as that there was an accident. Therefore I find you guilty.'
The court heard how when questioned by police, Danso initially told officers that he was avoiding a 'silver car' when the crash took place.
But when officers produced CCTV evidence showing the silver car did not exist, Danso changed his story, the court was told.
He later insisted that he was altering his seat position as he drove through an industrial estate but was too 'embarrassed' to tell officers.
Appearing in court this week, Danso told magistrates: 'I just lifted the lever up and went to push it back.
'It was stiff to start off with so I pushed a bit harder and my foot slipped forward on the right hand side of the accelerator and pushed it down.
'At that point the car accelerated and the back of the car pulled to the left.'
CCTV footage from the crash in February showed Danso driving along the road in the industrial estate. The car is then seen veering across the other side of the road and ploughing head-first into a fence.
In court, the prosecutor accused him of driving at 'some speed' but Danso denied he was speeding. There was no evidence to suggest he had exceeded the 30mph limit, the court was told.
The court heard how Danso later provided police with a forged car insurance certificate. But Judge Brennan found Danso not guilty of forging the document, because it had been handed to him by his boss, the court was told.
He said: 'I don't believe you sent on that document knowing it to be a forgery to the police. I think you had no knowledge whatsoever that document was a forgery.
'Withstanding the lies you told to the police I think you have told me the truth and you didn't know it was a forged document. I find you not guilty.'
Danso, from Slough, was handed nine points on his licence, fined £1,000 and ordered to pay £400 costs. He kept his job with the wealthy Chinese businessman, with whom he has worked for four years.
His defence solicitor Richard Davies also described him as a 'man of good character'.
The incident was the second major crash involving the Zonda. It was initially bought for around £340,000 in 2003 by Scottish oil tycoon Gareth Jones.
But in 2009, he let a 'world famous racing driver' take the Pagani for a drive, with the champion crashing it into an electricity pole.
F1 legend Jackie Stewart was forced to deny local rumours he was behind the wheel of the car at the time. The identity of the driver never officially revealed.
After the crash - the most expensive in Aviva's history - the Zonda was sent back to Pagani's headquarters in Italy where it was given a complete overhaul at a cost of £261,000.
The car was renamed the GJ, after its owner and later sold to Chen by Amian Cars. It has dramatically increased in value since that time.
Music : EDM Detection Mode by Kevin MacLeod
Andy Danso, 43, lost control of the Pagani Zonda as he drove the 214mph vehicle back from its MOT on behalf of Chinese businessman Jen-Te Chen, also known as Kenny.
He ended up crashing the rare car - regarded as one of the world's most desirable - into a fence on an industrial estate in Wembley, north west London, causing 'thousands' of pounds of damage.
In 2009, the same car was crashed into an electricity pole in Aberdeenshire, after the then owner Gareth Jones let a 'world famous racing driver' take it for a spin.
Danso has now been fined £1,000 after being convicted of driving without due care and attention and driving without insurance.
Handing down the sentence at Willesden Magistrates' Court, District judge Denis Brennan said: 'You were driving a high-performance vehicle with a top speed of 214mph.
'Finding the seat was uncomfortable, because you were too close to the steering wheel, you continued on the journey.
'Whereas a reasonable and prudent driver would have pulled over you didn't and as far as that there was an accident. Therefore I find you guilty.'
The court heard how when questioned by police, Danso initially told officers that he was avoiding a 'silver car' when the crash took place.
But when officers produced CCTV evidence showing the silver car did not exist, Danso changed his story, the court was told.
He later insisted that he was altering his seat position as he drove through an industrial estate but was too 'embarrassed' to tell officers.
Appearing in court this week, Danso told magistrates: 'I just lifted the lever up and went to push it back.
'It was stiff to start off with so I pushed a bit harder and my foot slipped forward on the right hand side of the accelerator and pushed it down.
'At that point the car accelerated and the back of the car pulled to the left.'
CCTV footage from the crash in February showed Danso driving along the road in the industrial estate. The car is then seen veering across the other side of the road and ploughing head-first into a fence.
In court, the prosecutor accused him of driving at 'some speed' but Danso denied he was speeding. There was no evidence to suggest he had exceeded the 30mph limit, the court was told.
The court heard how Danso later provided police with a forged car insurance certificate. But Judge Brennan found Danso not guilty of forging the document, because it had been handed to him by his boss, the court was told.
He said: 'I don't believe you sent on that document knowing it to be a forgery to the police. I think you had no knowledge whatsoever that document was a forgery.
'Withstanding the lies you told to the police I think you have told me the truth and you didn't know it was a forged document. I find you not guilty.'
Danso, from Slough, was handed nine points on his licence, fined £1,000 and ordered to pay £400 costs. He kept his job with the wealthy Chinese businessman, with whom he has worked for four years.
His defence solicitor Richard Davies also described him as a 'man of good character'.
The incident was the second major crash involving the Zonda. It was initially bought for around £340,000 in 2003 by Scottish oil tycoon Gareth Jones.
But in 2009, he let a 'world famous racing driver' take the Pagani for a drive, with the champion crashing it into an electricity pole.
F1 legend Jackie Stewart was forced to deny local rumours he was behind the wheel of the car at the time. The identity of the driver never officially revealed.
After the crash - the most expensive in Aviva's history - the Zonda was sent back to Pagani's headquarters in Italy where it was given a complete overhaul at a cost of £261,000.
The car was renamed the GJ, after its owner and later sold to Chen by Amian Cars. It has dramatically increased in value since that time.
Music : EDM Detection Mode by Kevin MacLeod
Source : DailyMail
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