A lorry driver has been jailed for 14 months after killing a motorcyclist and seriously injuring his son because he had fixed his broken wing mirror with duct tape.

Robert Witherspoon, 57, of Edinburgh Avenue, Leigh, caused the crash which killed David Little, 63, by switching lanes on the A13 in Barking, east London at about 2pm in June 2016.

He was unable to properly check his wing mirror because it was hanging off and had been secured in a botched repair job.

The Old Bailey heard how he clipped a Ford Mondeo driving beside him in the slow lane, sending it spinning across all three lanes and into the path of the Harley Davidson motorbike being driven Mr Little, with his son Tom riding pillion .

Witherspoon, a former Army driving instructor, had attempted to fix his broken wing mirror with tape, meaning he could not see properly when he collided with the Ford Mondeo driving beside him.

The MailOnline reported that he was sentenced to 14 months in prison for causing death by careless driving yesterday.

Prosecutor Christopher Amis said: “If Mr Witherspoon had checked his mirror as he stated, he would have seen this car in the inside lane.

‘Very unfortunately for the deceased, Mr Little became trapped underneath the Mondeo.

“That was no doubt what caused the subsequent injuries to his torso.

“When the Mondeo came to rest Mr Little was still trapped underneath the vehicle.”

Mr Amis told the court that Witherspoon’s wing mirror, which had been taped to the lorry’s body, had been ‘positioned in such a way that does not comply with an EU directive’.

Judge Zoe Smith DL, sentencing Witherspoon, said: ‘The main exterior rear view mirror on your lorry near the near side had been previously damaged and fixed with tape and the investigator found that it was pushed close to the vehicle body.”

Adding: “The investigator concluded that it was your manoeuvre in changing lanes that instigated the events resulting in the collision.”

Tom Little, who is in his 20s, was ejected from the bike and flew through the air onto the central reservation.

He had to use a wheelchair for two months after the collision, and he still cannot run or play the sports he formerly enjoyed, the court heard.

Witherspoon admitted causing death by careless driving.

As well as the jail term, he was disqualified from driving for 18 months.