Brothers racing home jailed for killing dad and seriously injuring son

Two brothers racing each other home before a crash which killed a father-of-two and seriously injured his nine-year-old son have been jailed.

Rhys Jenkins died at the scene of the crash near Welshpool, Powys, in November 2024 and his son Ioan was airlifted to hospital when a BMW X3 driven by Abubakr Ben Yusaf drifted sideways and hit their Toyota Yaris head on.

Abubakr Ben Yusaf was sentenced to 14 years for causing death by dangerous driving, causing serious injury by dangerous driving and causing death while uninsured.

Umar Ben Yusaf, who was behind him on the road in his own vehicle, was sentenced to two years and nine months for causing death and serious injury by careless driving.

Rugby referee Rhys Jenkins had been taking Ioan from their home in Meifod to watch Wales play Australia in Cardiff, their first Wales rugby match together, on the day of the crash.

Mold Crown Court heard the brothers, both locom optometrists, were driving from Aberystwyth to Manchester at the time.

The brothers were racing and trying to get ahead of each other on the A483 between Newtown and Welshpool when witnesses described them "aggressively" tailgating cars and flashing their headlights before overtaking traffic recklessly in the moments before the crash.

They later fled the scene while witnesses helped rescue Ioan from the car.

Within 40 minutes of the collision, Umar Ben Yusaf drove back to the area and told a police community support officer that the person responsible was with him.

Following the sentencing, Rhys' wife Caroline Jenkins, also known as Carrie, said in a statement she often wondered what difference it would have made to her family's future "if we'd hugged a little tighter and a little longer" when she waved them off that day.

She added that for her son, life "without a dad who was involved in everything you did is a hard adjustment" and it "carried an element of PTSD".

Carrie said Ioan still carried emotional and physical scars as a result of the crash.

"It's impossible to convey the full impact Rhys' death had on us," she said, adding there was a "massive hole left in our lives by his unnecessary death".

Ioan, who broke both arms, and suffered a fractured rib and perforated bowel, said he wished his dad was still here to "watch me grow up and be my dad".

Rhys' youngest son Gruff was six when the crash happened.

In his own victim impact statement, he said he was in bed when police arrived to tell his mum what had happened.

When he was told his father had died, he said: "I ran out of the house. I didn't know where I was going. It was the worst feeling of my life."

The court heard that while Umar Ben Yusaf's car was not directly involved in the crash, the "competitive" nature of his driving with Abubakr Ben Yusaf contributed significantly.