'Cheeky' boy, 5, killed by car 'as he ran across road looking for older brothers'

Dexter Chapman, five, tragically died aft moving crossed the roadworthy extracurricular his location successful Truro, Cornwall, and being deed by a car. He was described arsenic 'the astir loving small boy'

A "cheeky" lad who was a "beautiful small ray of sunshine" was tragically killed by a car arsenic helium ran crossed a roadworthy portion looking for his older brothers, an inquest heard.

Dexter Chapman, five, was deed by a Ford Fiesta connected Penpillick Hill successful Par, Cornwall, connected the evening of April 25 past year. The superior schoolhouse pupil suffered aggregate injuries and was declared dormant astatine the scene, contempt the efforts of bystanders and paramedics.

At the clip of the tragedy, Dexter's household said helium was "the astir loving small boy" and described him arsenic a "beautiful small ray of sunshine who brightened up immoderate room." In a connection work retired astatine the inquest held successful Truro today, the child's mum Bryony said helium had been a blessed and progressive small lad who liked playing extracurricular with his siblings.

She said helium had been the "cheeky storyteller successful the family." Bryony said that connected the time of the collision, Dexter and his brothers had travel backmost from schoolhouse by taxi astatine the mean clip and, aft being told to cleanable up their rooms, went extracurricular to play successful the garden, Cornwall Live reports.

She said that Dexter didn't person immoderate proceeding oregon eyesight problems nor immoderate learning difficulties. She added that Dexter and his siblings had ever been told of the dangers of the roadworthy and to support wide of them..

In her statement, she said that Dexter, who was inactive successful his schoolhouse uniform, had travel into the location to accidental his brothers didn't privation to fto him play with them, but helium past near again to spell and find his brothers. She said she told him to play successful the backmost plot and not spell to the neighbours' location and play connected the plaything arsenic she thought helium was excessively tiny for it.

The inquest was told that Dexter came retired of the plot done a lane starring to the main roadworthy and ran crossed it, perchance not realising that a car was approaching oregon not realising the velocity the conveyance was travelling. In a connection work retired successful court, the operator of the Ford Fiesta said helium was coming location from enactment and was sticking to the velocity bounds successful the area.

The time was adust and truthful was the roadworthy aboveground with bully visibility and airy traffic. He said that arsenic helium climbed up the hill, determination was thing successful beforehand of his car, but helium could spot houses connected the left-hand broadside and an overgrown writer verge.

In his statement, helium said: "I saw thing move. It each happened astatine speed. The adjacent 2nd a kid came retired onto the roadworthy successful beforehand of me. He stopped arsenic if helium didn't cognize wherever to go. I didn't cognize which mode to steer to debar him. It each happened truthful fast."

Despite immoderate exigency braking and trying to determination into lane 2 to debar Dexter, the operator could not debar the collision, Cornwall Live reported. Another operator travelling towards Penpillick Hill said Dexter ran consecutive into the roadworthy successful beforehand of the Ford Fiesta. Dexter suffered unsurvivable aggregate injuries arsenic a effect of the impact.

PC Rachel Ellis, the investigating serviceman successful the case, told the inquest that determination was wide grounds of exigency braking from the Ford Fiesta operator and that helium had moved to alteration lanes to effort and debar Dexter. She added: "There was thing the operator could person done to debar colliding with Dexter."

Dexter's dad, Dan, said the child's member had been with him but had travel backmost in, portion Dexter had been by the broadside of the roadworthy looking for him. Concluding successful a roadworthy postulation collision death, adjunct coroner for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly Stephen Covell said the collision had happened precise quickly, and determination was nary informing for the operator who, contempt trying to instrumentality evasive action, could not debar Dexter, who was past deed and sustained catastrophic injuries.

Mr Covell said: "It is apt that Dexter didn't person immoderate acquisition of crossing the roadworthy oregon did not spot the car oregon misjudged the velocity it was travelling at. It's apt that helium was conscionable looking for his member and thought they mightiness person gone backmost to the road. He ran crossed the roadworthy into the archetypal lane of the carriageway into the way of the Ford Fiesta. Emergency brakes were applied.

"The operator locked his wheels and tried to steer into the extracurricular lane but Dexter continued to tally crossed the roadworthy and the collision took place. The operator was incapable to debar the collision."