Sarkis Nakoul, 42, of NSW, was found guilty by a jury in Bendigo County Court of one charge of dangerous driving causing the death of Echuca’s Justine Cabral.
The charge relates to a fatal crash at Toolleen on November 5, 2022.
Nakoul had been driving his Ford Ranger east on Axedale-Toolleen Rd when he failed to give way at the intersection with the Northern Hwy, crashing into a Nissan X-Trail Ms Cabral was a passenger in that was travelling on the highway.
Ms Cabral, 24, died five days later in hospital.
Nakoul had pleaded not guilty in a trial before a jury to the charge, on the grounds of whether his driving was dangerous, but was ultimately found guilty.
On Monday, July 14, he was jailed for the offence.
Leading up to the intersection, the Axedale-Toolleen Rd had three sets of rumble strips, a sign dropping the speed limit from 100km/h to 60km/h, and various signs warning drivers to reduce speed and that there was an intersection ahead.
The intersection itself was marked with give way signs.
Collision reconstruction experts found that Nakoul’s vehicle was travelling at 56km/h as he approached the intersection, and between 40 and 42km/h as he hit the car being driven by Ms Cabral’s boyfriend.
In the trial, the prosecution argued Nakoul was driving dangerously because he failed to keep a proper lookout, while the defence urged the jury to find that while Nakoul caused the collision, his driving was careless, rather than dangerous.
In delivering his sentence, Judge Mark Gamble acknowledged victim impact statements by Ms Cabral’s boyfriend, as well as ones from her mother and sister.
He said her boyfriend said “part of his life had been taken away and would never be the same” and that he felt a degree of responsibility as Ms Cabral had been a passenger in the car he was driving.
“It was your driving that caused Justine’s death, not his (her boyfriend),” Judge Gamble told Nakoul.
Judge Gamble said in her victim impact statement Ms Cabral’s mother described the “agony and extreme pain at losing a daughter in a sudden and unexpected manner”, while Ms Cabral’s sister described her death as “devastating” and that it had “left a permanent void in their lives”.
Judge Gamble also acknowledged the impact the crash had on witnesses and those nearby who rendered assistance.
He spoke of Nakoul, a father of four, who had run his own building business for 20 years, but said the impact any jail term would have on his family, employees, clients and business was not enough to warrant an exemption for him being jailed.
The judge also spoke of how Nakoul and his wife would have to sell two investment properties, with the money from the sale being used to pay off the mortgage on the house where his wife and children would continue to live and for them to live while he was in jail.
He also spoke of references supplied to the court of Nakoul being “well respected and admired” by those who knew him, that he had good family support, and that his prospects of rehabilitation were good.
He also noted Nakoul had a “limited” criminal history and no driving history, that he had a major depressive disorder, and that this would be his first time in jail.
Judge Gamble said Nakoul’s offending was “mid-range” on the spectrum on dangerous driving causing death, but he noted there were no drugs or alcohol involved, and he had not been using his phone at the time.
“You either knew, or ought to have known, you were approaching an intersection where drivers were driving at speed,” Judge Gamble said.
Nakoul was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison, with a non-parole period of two years.
His driver’s licence was also disqualified for 18 months.
“The community is rightly concerned at the loss of life,” Judge Gamble said.
“A clear message must be sent that this type of conduct is unacceptable.”
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