An uninsured motorist has been jailed for eight years after his "cold-blooded and aggressive" driving killed a police officer.

Jan Tokar, 21, was racing and showing off when he crashed into motorcyclist PC Ian Walker, a judge said.

Tokar, a Slovakian, "cynically" blamed the tragedy on an innocent motorist he overtook at speed only 30 feet from a traffic island.

PC Walker, 51, who was engaged to be married to fiancee Sarah Scholey, died at the scene of the accident in Bolton Road, Bradford, on October 10 last year.

PC Walker was riding to work shortly before 6.30am when he was confronted by Tokar's Nissan Almera heading straight at him.

Prosecutor Andrew Dallas told Bradford Crown Court PC Walker lost control of his machine trying to avoid the collision. He died at the scene from multiple injuries.

Tokar, who was driving to work in Leeds as a packer, mounted the pavement and pulled up after 50 metres.

His uncle was in the front seat and another man was in the back of the vehicle.

Tokar, of Sunningdale, Girlington, pleaded guilty on May 6 to causing PC Walker's death by dangerous driving.

He blamed himself for overtaking before the traffic island but accused professional driver Shazad Khalil of not giving him room to cross back.

A hearing took place yesterday so Judge Jonathan Durham Hall QC could decide which version of events to accept.

Mr Khalil said Tokar's car came up fast behind him on Queen's Road and again caught him up on Bolton Road.

"I felt quite intimidated," Mr Khalil said.

The Almera pulled out to pass him at road hatchings approaching the traffic island.

Fearing he would be hit by the "desperate" driver forcing his way back in, Mr Khalil slowed and pulled nearer the pavement.

He told the court there was enough space for a double decker bus to move in front of him. But the Almera accelerated on to the wrong side of the traffic island bollard.

Mr Khalil said: "I thought he would get through and then I saw the motorcyclist.

"The rider braked, the headlight wobbled and the bike went on to its side."

The Almera had been so close behind him the driver failed to see the traffic island, he said.

Relatives of PC Walker wept as Mr Khalil told how the Almera drove over the motorcyclist "with no regard for him".

Graham Duckett, who was behind PC Walker, swerved violently to avoid a head-on crash.

Mr Dallas said ten months before the fatal crash Tokar was stopped for driving without insurance, leading to a nine-month driving ban.

Six days before causing PC Walker's death, he bought the Almera for £300 from a fellow Slovakian but did not insure it.

Tokar told the court he had been driving in the UK for up to seven months.

He did not know he could not overtake on the road hatchings.

Tokar blamed himself for overtaking but said Mr Khalil did not help him by giving him room.

Judge Durham Hall accused Tokar of "an aggressive, fast and showing-off action in keeping with intimidating driving in the ensuing moments before the crash."

He "raced that gap" at the traffic island in the face of a motorcycle and following vehicles. "It was a cold-blooded and aggressive action with utter disregard for anybody's life," the judge added.

Mr Khalil, forced to witness "that poor officer sliding towards him", had been blamed cynically and utterly erroneously. Tokar's action in doing so was "beneath contempt", said the judge.

"Jan Tokar drove cynically and aggressively to show off or simply for the hell of it," Judge Durham Hall said.

The judge accepted Tokar was a young man of good character who did not deliberately set out to kill or hurt anyone but he said it was "a very serious and grave offence".

He banned Tokar from driving for six years.

After the judge passed sentence, Tokar's relatives wept loudly and a woman was carried from the courtroom overcome with emotion.

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