A driver who caused the death of a five-year-old boy when he was supposed to be serving a ban for drink driving has been sentenced to six years in prison.

Darren Jacques, of Hutton Hill in Penrith, was halfway through a 42-month suspension when he pulled up outside a shop in his work van for a bottle of beer on 25 August 2020.

Five-year-old Layton Darwood climbed onto the trailer while he was in the shop in Fenham, in Newcastle, and fell off as Jacques, 42, drove away.

He later died in hospital.

Jacques, who initially gave police a false name, was charged with causing death by driving while disqualified and was found guilty on 4 September, following a six-day trial.

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