Chartered accountant, 35, died when he passed out on motorway after taking Ecstasy on his way to Premier League football match with his six-year-old son, inquest hears

By Milo Pope[1]

Published: 19:06, 15 August 2024 | Updated: 19:06, 15 August 2024

A chartered accountant died when he passed out on the motorway minutes after taking Ecstasy whilst driving his six year old to a Premier League[2] football match, an inquest heard.

'Doting father' Simon Jaines was on a 'fun boy's weekend away' when he crashed at 85mph with his son, who cannot be named for legal reasons, who was in the back seat of his BMW, a coroner was told.

The pair had just stopped at a service station, where it was heard the 35-year-old father may have consumed MDMA before returning to the wheel.

The Class A drug caused him to lose consciousness and the car crashed into the central reservation before speeding across all three lanes of traffic and off the M27 near Southampton, Hampshire, into a tree.

Anna Jaines, Mr Jaines' wife, told the hearing that her son said: 'I think daddy fainted, I could see his eyes were closed and his head was down.'

Simon Jaines, pictured, died after passing out on the motorway just minutes after taking Ecstasy on his way to a Premier League match with his son

While the youngster survived with minor injuries, the inquest heard Mr Jaines died instantly from a head injury.

Recording a death by misadventure, Area Coroner Jason Pegg said the crash had occurred in 'close proximity' to his drug-taking.

'Si [Simon] was just 35 years old, a healthy man, what I do find is that he had MDMA in his blood.

'It is recorded that MDMA can cause ventricular fibrillation and it causes someone who has taken it to struggle to regulate their temperature.

'It seems to me that in close proximity in time, possibly at the service station, Si consumed MDMA and in consequence of having taken MDMA [it] caused him to lose consciousness.'

Mrs Jaines told the inquest that she didn't know anything about her husband's drug taking and that he was a 'lovely guy'.

'He was a lovely guy, really funny. He had loads of mates, a really sociable guy. He was the life and soul of the party and a doting father,' said Mrs Jaines.

The inquest in Winchester heard the father and son were travelling from their home in Bradford, West Yorkshire, to Bournemouth on August 11 last year to watch West Ham play the Dorset side on the first day of the 2023/24 season.

The hearing was told that the duo had just stopped at Rownhams services on the outskirts of Southampton for food.

Mrs Jaines last heard from her husband at the services when he sent a photo of their son with a cone of sweets.

Only two miles later - just after 1pm - the inquest heard that Mr Jaines fainted and slumped in the driver's seat with his right arm in the air.

As a result he lost control of the BMW 330E which drifted into lane three and had a small collision with a Ford Fiesta before hitting the central reservation.

Mr Jaines' foot then came to rest on the accelerator and the car went from travelling at 57 mph to 85 mph and crossed the entire Westbound motorway diagonally before hitting a tree on the embankment beside the road.

In a statement read by the coroner, Hannah Ogley, the driver of the Ford Fiesta said: 'I saw a dark BMW enter lane three in front of my car.

I sharply applied my breaks but the front passenger side of my car collided with the BMW.

The father and son were travelling from their home in Bradford to Bournemouth to watch West Ham play the Dorset side on the first day of the 2023/24 season

'After our cars collided I moved towards the central reservation, the BMW was still moving forwards. I thought the BMW was pulling to the hard shoulder to exchange details.'

Ms Ogley said when she stopped she saw that the car had gone down the embankment although she did not actually see the BMW leave the carriageway.

Another driver, Amber Ashby, said in her witness statement: 'I came parallel [to the BMW] and could see a male driver. It appeared to me his head was slumped to the right.

I said to my partner "I think the driver is unwell".

'The BMW drifted and the vehicle's speed dramatically increased, the vehicle continued at speed and left the carriageway.'

The road traffic investigation report described 'severe front end damage' to the BMW including the roof being torn off and the windscreen crushed.

Mr Jaines, a finance business partner, suffered fractures to his right arm, face and skull, bruising to the brain and a laceration of the liver, a post mortem examination found.

The inquest heard that blood tests revealed the MDMA in his system had been taken 'in close proximity' to the accident and there was also a low level of cocaine, indicating previous use.

The coroner recorded a conclusion of death by misadventure because of the MDMA in Mr Jaines' system.

Mr Pegg said: 'There came a time when Si, who was driving the car, collided with the central barrier before going down the embankment and colliding with a tree.

'The cause of death given was head injury and it is clear that the head injury suffered by Si was extremely severe, he no doubt would have died immediately.'

Mr Pegg gave his condolences to his family, who were in attendance.

In a tribute at the time they said: 'We are all completely devastated and words cannot describe the pain we are all feeling right now.

'What was supposed to just be a fun boy's weekend away (daddy and son) to watch the footy has ended in a complete tragedy.

We can only be grateful that his little boy walked away, and no one else was injured.

'Si was such a kind, funny, witty person (with some questionable dance moves) who was loved by so many people, and the outpouring of messages we're receiving has been comforting.

'He was an avid West Ham supporter and was a much-loved daddy, husband, son, brother, family member and friend, and will be missed dearly by all.

'We would like to sincerely thank the emergency services and witnesses for their help and best efforts on the day.'

His friend Patrick Henderson raised GBP1,185 for children's grief charity Winston's Wish by climbing Mount Snowdon.

On the Just Giving page Mr Henderson said: 'Simon was more than a friend; he was a loving father, husband, a devoted West Ham United fan, and a kind-hearted soul who left an indelible mark on all of us.

'Tragically, Simon's life was cut short while he was on his way to watch his favourite football team, West Ham United.

Though he is no longer with us, his spirit lives on through the causes he holds dear.'

References

1. ^ Milo Pope (www.dailymail.co.uk)
2. ^ Premier League (www.dailymail.co.uk)