A woman was seriously injured when two cars ‘exploded’ in an early hours smash in central Bradford, a court heard.

Amir Mushtaq went through a red light at excessive speed in his Volkswagen Jetta, crashing into a Vauxhall Vectra on Croft Street and causing catastrophic damage.

Today, he was jailed for a total of three years following the collision at 2.15am on February 17, 2019.

The father of two, formerly of Highlands Grove, Great Horton, Bradford, pleaded guilty to causing his sister-in-law serious injury by dangerous driving.

He was imprisoned for two years, with 12 months of a suspended sentence for theft activated consecutively, and banned from driving for 42 months.

Prosecutor Nick Adlington told Bradford Crown Court that 30-year-old Mushtaq at first denied being the driver but changed his plea to guilty before his trial.

The crash at the junction of Manchester Road and Croft Street happened after he went through a red light, hitting the Vectra and causing ‘catastrophic damage.’

“One witness described seeing the two cars exploding,” Mr Adlington said.

Mushtaq had two passengers in the car including his sister-in-law who sustained three fractured vertebra. The driver of the Vectra had severe whiplash and Mushtaq himself was badly injured.

His DNA was found on the airbag on the driver’s side of the car, Mr Adlington said.

Defence barrister, Andrew Dallas, said Mushtaq had since moved to Oldham with his family and was working as a delivery driver.

He too was seriously injured in the collision, sustaining a fractured pelvis and ribs and a punctured lung.

Mr Dallas said the case had taken a long time to get to court. The significant delay was not the fault of Mushtaq, although he had then denied the offence.

He had kept out of trouble in the more than three years since the crash and he was fully licensed and insured to drive the car.

Mushtaq conceded that his speed was excessive when he hit the Vectra and he could not explain why he went through the red light.

Recorder Tahir Khan QC said Mushtaq’s brother’s wife sustained really serious injury in the collision. She had three factures to her vertebrae and a fractured hip and she was in hospital for weeks.

The driver of the Vectra had a very lucky escape. It could have been much more serious for him.

Recorder Khan acknowledged that the jail sentence would have an impact on Mushtaq’s family but he was going at excessive speed and went through a red light shortly after receiving the suspended sentence.