Two men who filmed themselves speeding at 139mph in a 30mph zone while inhaling from balloons before crashing into car and killing the driver are jailed for total of 23 years

Two men who filmed themselves breathing through balloons while driving at 139 miles per hour in a 30 mph zone before hitting and killing the driver of another car have been sentenced to a total of 23 years in prison.

Uways Hussain, 20, and Usmon Mahmood, 23, had spent the night driving dangerously in Manchester before colliding with a vehicle driven by Sylvester Abayomi.

Mr Abayomi, who was on his way to work at the time of the accident just after 4.30am on March 9, had exited an intersection after Hussain and Mahmood ran a red light but crashed into him at high speed.

Prosecutor Rachel Shenton said the Golf was being driven ‘at speed’ through the light and Mahmood was ‘singing encouraging songs’ to Hussein as he drove.

Immediately following the collision, Greater Manchester Police received an alert from Hussain’s Apple watch identifying him as having been involved in a collision.

In audio recordings of the report, the two men were heard discussing their plans to flee the scene and trying to decide what evidence they should remove from the vehicle.

They were jailed at Manchester Crown Court today after admitting the charges against them.

From 11pm the previous night, Hussain and Mahmood were driving recklessly in the south Manchester area.

The vehicle belonged to Mahmood but was driven by Hussein at high speed throughout the night. Cellphone footage obtained from the men shows them repeatedly reaching speeds of 130 miles per hour, running red lights and weaving through traffic.

At one stage the pair stopped at a petrol station and footage shows Mahmood breathing from a balloon in the passenger seat.

Video footage from the men’s phones shows them appearing to breathe through balloons while driving at more than 100 miles per hour

The collision, which occurred seconds after the men’s vehicle reached a speed of 139 miles per hour, caused major damage to both vehicles.

The men were jailed for a total of 23 years for the crash at the junction of Green End Road and Kingsway in Manchester.

In other recovered footage, we can see both men breathing through balloons as Hussein drives at over 100 miles per hour.

At approximately 4.36am, Mr Abayomi entered the junction of Green End Road and Kingsway on a green light.

He was then hit by a Volkswagen Golf driven by Hussain, which ran a red light at high speed. The car is believed to have been traveling at 99 miles per hour at the time of impact.

Emergency services arrived at the scene and Mr. Abayomi was taken to hospital, where he later died.

Greater Manchester Police received several emergency calls and automatic alerts from Apple watch about the crash.

The men were heard discussing plans to flee the scene. Reporting the vehicle as stolen. The two also discussed whether Mr. Abayomi was dead, but she booked an Uber and fled the scene without checking on him.

Police intervened and within 12 minutes the couple was located, captured and arrested.

When arrested by police, Hussein had to be given an electric shock and he told officers: ‘None of us were even there. What happened? Did someone die?’

Uways Hussain, 20, was sentenced to 11 years and 8 months in prison after admitting causing death by dangerous driving, causing death by driving without insurance and failing to provide a sample.

Usmon Mahmood, 23, was sentenced to 12 years and 9 months in prison for aiding and abetting death by dangerous driving and aiding and abetting death by driving without insurance.

In the images obtained by the police from their phones, Mahmood and Hussain filmed themselves driving at high speed.

In a victim impact statement, Mr Abayomi’s partner of 20 years, Denise Doyle, said his death was a ‘nightmare’ and she felt she had been ‘left in a box and couldn’t get out’.

He said she was ‘hard-working’, ‘kind and dedicated’ and ‘full of life’.

‘All this disappeared in a single moment,’ he added. ‘From that day on, my life changed forever. It is impossible to fully describe the loss I feel.

‘It’s not just grief, it’s a constant emptiness. Every day I wake up to the fact that he is gone.

‘The life we ​​built was taken from me and the future we planned no longer exists.’

Honorary Judge Dean, Honorary Recorder of Manchester, sentenced Hussain to 11 years and eight months and Mahmood to 12 years and nine months.

He said Mr Abayomi’s death was ‘completely unnecessary’ and ‘entirely preventable’.

He said Hussein had engaged in ‘sustained, deliberate and escalatory’ and ‘extremely dangerous behavior over a prolonged period’.

The judge described the video footage as ‘appalling’ and said Hussein had shown ‘blatant disregard for the safety of other road users’ and ‘apparently took deliberate risks for the thrill of it’.

He said Mahmood’s role was not ‘passive’, that he ‘encouraged and facilitated’ Hussein’s behavior and that his culpability was ‘on par’ with his co-defendant.

He said the couple made no attempt to help the victim but fled the scene following the crash and Mr Abayomi was killed due to ‘appalling and entirely preventable behaviour’.

Addressing Mr Abayomi’s family, he added that no sentence he could impose could offset the impact of his death.

He also banned both men from driving for eight years.

Hussain, of Burnage, Manchester, had previously admitted a charge of causing death by dangerous driving and today pleaded guilty to a charge of causing death by dangerous driving while uninsured.

Mahmood, of Levenshulme, Manchester, previously pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting death by dangerous driving and aiding and abetting death by driving without insurance.

Defending Hussain, who was previously convicted of drug use in October 2024 and given a 12-month driving ban, Neil Ronan said he felt ‘regret’ for his actions.

“He genuinely regrets the outcome of continuing in the way he did,” Mr Ronan said, adding that “fear and panic” caused him to leave the scene.

Defending Mahmood, Clare Ashcroft said she was also remorseful and ‘wasn’t brought up to act like this’.

He added that he was not driving the car and that was what made him ‘different’ from Hussein.

Detective Sergeant Thomas Johnson, of Greater Manchester Police’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: ‘This is one of the most extremely dangerous driving cases we have encountered and tragically resulted in the loss of Sylvester’s life.

‘Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this incredibly difficult time.

‘No sentence can truly compensate for the loss of a life, but the actions of Hussein and Mahmood show a complete disregard for the safety of others.

We hope this outcome provides some measure of justice for Sylvester’s loved ones. ‘We urge the public to stand up to dangerous driving behavior and report their concerns to the police.’