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Joshua Atkins (pictured) was a passenger when his friend Corey Owen Cooper sped and crashed the car (Picture: South Yorkshire Police/PA Wire) A teenager killed his best friend during a collision while driving ‘deplorably’ the day after passing his practical test. Corey Owen Cooper has been jailed for five years today after causing the death of his friend Josh Atkins, 17, and seriously injuring another teen, Gabe Wiggett. The new driver lost control of his granddad’s Fiat after speeding more than 30mph over the 20mph limit as he was going around a bend and rammed into a metal barrier, flipping the car. Moments after the Cooper, who was 17 at the time, realised what had happened, he said: ‘What have I done? I’ve killed my best friend.’ To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Up Next Previous Page Next Page Cooper was driving his two mates in Stannington, Sheffield, when the collision occurred on November 11, 2023. The crash happened on Mr Atkins’ dad’s birthday, and the teen was pronounced dead days later. He had been driving the then 17-year-old boys in his grandfather’s Fiat Grande Punto at an estimated 53mph on a 20mph road. Friends later remarked that the Fiat’s dashboard warning lights had been flashing ‘like a Christmas tree’ for more than an hour before the crash, indicating a fault with the anti-lock braking system, which stops cars from locking up during hard stops, was not working properly. Josh Atkins’ family said he was ‘cheeky, funny, friendly and kind, with an infectious energy’ (Picture: South Yorkshire Police/PA Wire) The court heard how a witness who was behind the car said the Fiat ‘just shot off’ when it got to a straight part of the road. She added: ‘He went that fast we lost sight of him’. The witness found the Fiat upturned with Owen Cooper standing close by, soaked in blood. Prosecutor Ian West said that one of Cooper’s friends said that earlier that evening he had sped past Bradfield School, Worrall, at 80mph. He had also been performing ‘doughnuts’ that night in a Lodge Moor car park. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Up Next Previous Page Next Page Judge Jeremy Richardson KC sentenced Cooper, now 19, who pleaded guilty, to five years in prison. KC Richardson said that he displayed ‘immaturity on a grand scale.’ He said: ‘This case depicts human tragedy in every dimension. ‘This case should be called to the attention of all young people who have just passed the driving test. ‘It is a case of a young man aged 17, as you were, driving a car deplorably, almost certainly trying to show off to friends. ‘In consequence of your driving too fast, that young man – you – killed a friend and maimed another friend. ‘A young life has been ended. Another two lives have been ruined. For what? Showing off to friends.’ Gabe Wiggett, Josh Atkins’s aunt, Claire Chapman and South Yorkshire Police Inspector Kieran Frain (from left to right) outside Sheffield Crown Court where Corey Owen Cooper has been sentenced to five years in prison (Picture: Dave Higgens/PA Wire) Mr Atkins’ aunt, Claire Chapman, read a family statement outside the court. She described her nephew as ‘full of promise, laughter and happiness,’ and that his death was ‘utterly shattering for all out family and friends.’ She called for the graduated driving licence system to be brought in, which bereaved parents like Crystal Owen, the mother of Harvey Owen, 17, who died in a crash, have demanded. The government said earlier this year that it is not looking to proceed with the system despite calls from campaigners. Ms Chapman said: ‘Young and inexperienced drivers need more support, more education, and more accountability before they are given full driving licence privileges. ‘This is not about punishment, it is about prevention. ‘If such a system was in place, Josh would still be with us today, still living his life.’ Last November, the local community, family and friends came together to commemorate Atkins on the year anniversary of his death. More than 100 people took part in a memorial walk in Hillsborough Park and also raised £700 for The Donor Family Network and RoadPeace charities. At the wish of his family, Atkins’ organs were also donated, and they were used to help save the lives of four other people, which brought the family some comfort and was the ‘ultimate gift.’ Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. For more stories like this, check our news page.
