An Afghan Uber driver who mowed down and killed a customer who had been sick in his car has been jailed for five years – but has been cleared of his murder.
Hayadulla Turkmani, 53, flew into a 'fury' when Michael Ashton, 28, got 'a small amount' of vomit on the back seat of the car last year.
After Mr Ashton got out of the car and tried to wipe down the seat, the driver - who the judge described as the 'aggressor' in the incident - hit the council worker outside his own home in Basildon, Essex.
Mr Ashton, who 'didn't have an aggressive bone in his body', was rushed to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel but died on October 4, 2025 with a severe brain injury.
Although Turkmani had been up against murder and manslaughter charges, a unanimous jury at Basildon Crown Court acquitted the driver and convicted him instead to causing Mr Ashton's death by dangerous driving.
As the verdict was announced after two-and-a-half days of deliberations, spectators burst into tears and shouted 'No! No!'.
Judge Samantha Cohen said she believes Turkmani 'should have seen' Mr Ashton in the road, adding his driving showed 'complete disregard' to the danger he posed.
She said: 'I am satisfied you knew he was still in the close, you had no reason to think otherwise; you simply refused to pay regard to where he was.
Uber driver Hayadulla Turkmani, 53, has been sentenced to five years in prison afterhe mowed down and killed a customer who had been sick in his car
Michael Ashton, 28, was rushed to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel after he was hit but thee council worker died on October 4 2025 from a severe brain injury
'You should have seen him and should have stopped before you hit him.'
However, she added she was 'bound' by the jury's verdict and said as a result she must conclude Turkmani had not intended to hit the 28-year-old as he stood in the road.
Judge Cohen told Turkmani he would spend half of his sentence in prison and was issued a seven-and-a-half year driving ban.
She said: 'I am satisfied you were the aggressor in this argument.
'When you arrived at their home Mr Ashton's partner Sophie Carroll decided to try her best to clear it up - you remained angry.
'I am satisfied you were the aggressor in this argument. As you drive away you couldn't resist an abusive parting shot towards Mr Ashton.'
She added there was evidence the 53-year-old experienced symptoms consistent with shock, and had tried to help lift the vehicle off Mr Ashton.
Earlier this week, the jury, made up of seven men and five women, found Turkmani guilty of causing the death of Michael Ashton by dangerous driving.
Judge Samantha Cohen admonished the public gallery twice for their emotional outbursts as the verdicts were delivered.
In a victim impact statement from Michael Ashton's partner, Sophie Carroll, she said she lost a 'soulmate' and 'the future they planned together'.
She said: 'We spoke about getting married. We had the same ideas about what we wanted in life, we wanted children together and spoke about spending the rest of our lives together.
'Since he passed away I have struggled to find my place in life without him.
'It's not just Michael I have lost, but the life we shared, the future we planned and the opportunity to spend the rest of my life with him.'
Meanwhile Jayne Ashton, Mr Ashton's mum, said his family have been handed a 'life sentence'.
She said: 'This should never happen to anyone or any family.
'Throughout all of this we have been made to feel like he was the aggressor, but my son didn't have an aggressive bone in his body.
'It makes me sad, talking about how he left handprints in the bonnet trying to push the car away from him.
'I wonder if he was scared, so petrified for his life he was able to try to push two tonnes of metal away from him.
'This is a life sentence for us. He was the best son and friend, if everyone was more like him the world would be a happier place.'
Prosecutors contended Turkmani, who was aided in the dock by an Afghan Dari interpreter, had run over Mr Ashton with his automatic Toyota Prius in anger.
But Turkmani told the jury he was 'panicked and frightened' and 'did not see' the six-foot man.
The court heard how Mr Ashton, a Barking and Dagenham council worker, had spent an evening with his partner before requesting an Uber to take them home.
Mr Ashton became nauseous and ill – before a row broke out between Mr Ashton and Turkmani.
Basildon Crown Court heard Mr Ashton and his partner went inside and found cleaning wipes, which they then used to mop up the mess.
Turkmani said he accelerated in an attempt to get away from Mr Ashton, who he said ran towards his car.
While accepting he was 'annoyed', Turkmani rejected the prosecution's suggestion that he was angry enough to deliberately target Mr Ashton.
Turkmani, who the court heard left Afghanistan in 1999 to escape Taliban persecution, denied charges of murder, manslaughter and causing death by dangerous driving.