University of Essex students died in 94mph Colchester crash

BBC News

18-07-2025

A drink-driver hit speeds of about 94mph (151km/h) before crashing and killing his three friends after a night out, an inquest heard.Makyle Bayley, 22, was driving the car with fellow University of Essex students Eva Darold-Tchikaya, 21, Anthony Hibbert, 24, and Daljang Wol, 22, as his passengers.They were travelling "at speed and out of control" before ploughing into a shop in Magdalen Street, Colchester at about 04:40 GMT on 1 February, Essex Coroner's Court was told.Ruling they died in a road traffic collision, senior coroner Lincoln Brookes said they were students with "a lot of potential and dreams for the future".
In tributes after their deaths, Mr Hibbert, Mr Wol and Mr Bayley were described as talented basketball players, with Ms Darold-Tchikaya said to be a skilful dancer.CCTV captured the group dancing inside High Street nightclub Trilogy in the hours before the crash, before they left in a car at about 04:30.
Footage showed the vehicle "overshoot" a red traffic light on Southway and enter Magdalen Street "at speed and out of control", the inquest heard.An expert estimated it was being driven at about 94mph (151km/h) before it clipped a traffic island and a staircase on the 30mph (48km/h) road.That impact caused it to start "rolling and tipping, sliding along the footpath" and crashing into a brick building roof-first, PC Fiona Rayner said."The car is seen to physically bend around the building when it is struck."A loud noise and a cloud of dust can be seen after the collision, with a tyre rolling along the road."A taxi driver described his car being "showered in debris" after the impact, which immediately killed all four students.
Mr Bayley was two-and-a-half times over the legal alcohol limit for driving, with a pathologist suggesting this was a level of "significant or extreme drunkenness".
Many people in the courtroom in Chelmsford were moved to tears as tributes to the students were read aloud.Mr Bayley, a charity ambassador, was described as "a truly remarkable young man whose light and energy touched all who knew him".Essex Rebels basketball player Mr Wol was known for "his generosity, humour and unwavering determination", according to his family.His teammate, Mr Hibbert, was "the kind of person his friends could rely on and his family could count on", the inquest was told.Ms Darold-Tchikaya, an exercise and sport sciences student, was called a "calm and kind soul" who was "growing in confidence and enjoying a good group of friends".
Tributes were paid to them in full after their deaths, which left the university "torn apart".Concluding the hearing, Mr Brookes said he did not know why the car was being driven "at such grossly excessive speed", but found Mr Bayley was impaired by alcohol."One can only describe this as a tragic loss of four young, lively, ambitious people," he added.
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