Coward killed cyclist in Saltley then fled to Pakistan, had kids and worked as taxi driver

Andel Goulbourne, 59, was struck by a BMW going double the 30mph speed limit on Washwood Heath Road in Saltley in July 2020.

A cowardly motorist who killed a cyclist fled the nation within hours of the incident and started a new life thousands of miles away. Kashif Khan got married, had children, and worked as a taxi driver while on the run.

On Washwood Heath Road in Saltley, a driver exceeded the 30mph speed limit and collided with 59-year-old granddad Andel Goulbourne.

He escaped the scene, flew to Dubai, and later migrated to Pakistan. He led an apparently normal life until July of this year, when he was arrested upon returning to Birmingham Airport.

Meanwhile, the family of dear Mr Goulbourne was left with a great void in their lives and no closure. Khan, 28, of Parkhouse Drive in Erdington, received a six-year sentence for causing death by reckless driving at Birmingham Crown Court on Thursday, September 19.

He was also barred from driving for 12 years and ten and a half months, which was his second road ban. Judge Kerry Maylin told Mr Goulbourne’s family that the sentence was intended to “mark the criminality” rather than to “value” his life.

She told Khan, “You went on with your life, married, had two children, and lived freely in Pakistan.” This raises suspicions about what you were doing in Pakistan.

“You were clearly not consumed with regret as you worked as a taxi driver in Pakistan driving people around when knowing you had been involved in a fatal traffic collision.”

The crash occurred around 11.20 p.m. on July 30, 2020. Khan was driving a BMW that did not belong to him. It had been rented to someone else, who, oddly, had been involved in a separate car accident and had then allowed the defendant to drive it.

Witnesses reported how Khan ‘zoomed’ past them on a slip lane at Saltley Gate Island before colliding with a taxi driver as he merged back onto Washwood Heath lane. Moments later, he collided with Mr Goulbourne, who was riding his bicycle in the opposite direction and about to turn onto Clayton Road.

Khan was travelling at speeds ranging from 61 to 64 mph at the time of the crash, according to the inquiry. Mr Goulbourne was flung into the air, as seen by CCTV. The court was told that his body came to rest 50 metres from where he was struck.

Khan fled the scene. Judge Maylin told him, “You must have realised.” You exited your vehicle and walked towards the scene. Then, maybe after witnessing the devastation your reckless driving had caused, you cowardly fled the scene, leaving Mr Goulbourne to members of the public who had emerged from their own residences.”

In less than 20 hours, he was on a plane to Dubai. A few months later, Crimestoppers launched a wanted appeal with a £5,000 reward for information on the 24-year-old’s location.

Khan had passed an extended retest in May 2019, just over a year before the incident, following a conviction for reckless driving in 2017, which resulted in a six-month imprisonment and a 15-month driving disqualification. Mr Goulbourne’s sister, Carol Gordon, said the video of the incident and the image of his ‘lifeless body laying in the road’ haunted her every day.

She stated that on his 56th birthday, he told her that all he wanted from life was to ‘be among my family’, a request she claimed was ‘cruelly ripped away from him’. Ms Gordon continued: “Every time I see a bicycle on the road, flashbacks paralyse me for a split second, and I silently wish the biker a long life, safety, and happiness. That is all I wanted for my brother.”

Samantha Higgins, Mr Goulbourne’s daughter, told Khan: “You showed no remorse and only thought of yourself, opting to flee the scene and eventually the nation, leaving my father on the side of the road battling for his life.

“You escaped apprehension for four years. You are finally being held accountable for your deeds. As a family, we hope you take the time you have to think on the great pain you have caused.

“Our dad’s death left a huge void in lots of people’s lives especially our lives and those of his grandchildren who will now grow up without a father figure.”

Balbir Singh, Khan’s defence lawyer, said Khan ‘panicked’ after the crash and fled the country ‘terrified’, but he ‘worked up the nerve’ to return to the UK willingly and plead guilty. Mr Singh stated: “You know his age at the time, 24. You have his regrets and remorse.

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