Nigerian delivery driver jailed in UK after running over cyclist who spat through his window

A 44-year-old Nigerian van driver, Mark Okotie, has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison by a United Kingdom court after deliberately using his vehicle to run over a cyclist who spat at him during a road rage dispute.

Rush-hour confrontation 

The incident occurred on March 20, 2024, along New Cross Road in Lewisham, London, while Okotie was driving a delivery van transporting emergency blood supplies to a local hospital.

According to evidence presented at Woolwich Crown Court, Okotie pulled into the left lane without properly checking his mirrors, almost colliding with a cyclist. 

At the subsequent traffic light, the angry cyclist spat towards the delivery van. The spit went directly through Okotie’s open driver-side window, hitting him.

Vehicle used as weapon

In a swift act of retaliation captured on internal dashcam footage, Okotie swerved his van sharply into the cyclist, knocking him off his bicycle and running over him with two of the vehicle’s wheels.

The victim suffered severe fractures to his pelvis and femur, requiring surgical insertion of multiple metal plates and screws. 

In a victim impact statement read in court, the cyclist disclosed that the permanent physical damage has rendered him unable to jog or engage in physical sports.

Conviction and mitigation

Okotie, a resident of Southwark and father of eight with a one-year-old grandchild, was found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm with intent following a trial earlier this month.

Defending him, counsel Mandisa Knights described the action as a “momentary relapse in retaliation” by a man who had dedicated years to mentoring youths away from violent crime. 

Sentencing him to 42 months in custody, Recorder Neil Haythorne acknowledged that the act appeared out of character, but noted that a moment of extreme road rage had caused life-altering harm.

Detective Inspector Steven Andrews of the Metropolitan Police added that Okotie placed a human life at risk while driving a vehicle carrying critical, life-saving blood supplies intended for emergency patients.

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