Farncombe thief stole Royal Mail van then crashed into car of mother and two children

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Jamie Cansell was told that this incident was undoubtedly ‘the most serious’ in his catalogue of crimes after postman left van unlocked

A Farncombe thief who stole a Royal Mail van and ran off after crashing it into another vehicle, has been sentenced.

Jamie Cansell was told at Guildford Crown Court on Friday (September 9) that this incident on November 2 last year was undoubtedly ‘the most serious’ in his catalogue of crimes - 29 previous convictions for 53 offences.

The 24-year-old previously pleaded not guilty to one count of aggravated vehicle taking but later changed his plea to guilty. He also pleaded guilty to driving without insurance and driving without a license.

On Friday the court was told a postman was delivering letters in the Charterhouse area and left his vehicle unlocked.

Cansell spotted the red Ford Transit, jumped in and made his way along Priorsfield Road where he crashed minutes later into a black Peugeot 308.

Tara Lightfoot, the mother-of-two and the other driver involved in the incident, reported seeing the van coming towards her travelling ‘too fast to stay on the right side of the road’.


The court was told she was unable to avoid the crash because the van was travelling ‘too fast’.

Her air bag opened, her two children Jake and Mia were ‘screaming’ and her car filled with smoke inside.

Mrs Lightfoot was taken to hospital with grazes from on her collarbone, her left knee and the front of both hips. Mia had mild grazes on her chest.

The court was told Cansell made his escape on foot near Hurtmore and the A3 near Puttenham and Compton.

He was later arrested by two officers in an unmarked police car near to his home address in Longbourne.

Recorder Andrew Burns told Cansell it was only a ‘matter of time’ before his driving caused injuries to other people.

He said: “On November 2 2015 a Royal Mail Transit was delivering to houses in Godalming.

“You saw it was closed but it was unlocked and Mr Pitt [the postman] lost his job as a result of the theft.


“You drove dangerously on a busy morning and were in a collision near Prior’s Field School with a Peugeot driving around the corner, and you hit the Peugeot head on.

“The front caved in and you ran off like a coward, leaving the driver dazed and children screaming in distress.

“It is pure luck that someone wasn’t killed or more seriously injured.

“The children had no lasting injuries, but Mia had nightmares and was distressed when in a car for some weeks thereafter.

“It could have been a very nasty accident with very serious consequences for the children and something you would have had to live with for the rest of your life.”

The court was told Cansell has other offences on his record including assault and theft.

Recorder Burns said: “In 2008 taking a vehicle, driving whilst disqualified in 2008, aggravated vehicle taking 2011, driving a stolen vehicle whilst disqualified 2012, aggravated vehicle taking 2013, car theft 2014.

“This offence is no doubt the most serious in a catalogue of offences.

“You’ve taken no steps to address your driving offences and it was frankly a matter of time before your driving caused injuries to other people.”


Sentencing him to 18 months in prison, Recorder Burns told Cansell he needs to ‘do something’ with his life and make sure he doesn’t have an accident that causes his own death or someone else’s.

He said: “Your future lies in your hands and I hope this sentence, and when you are on licence, will help you grow up and do something better in the future.”

Cansell was sentenced to 18 months in prison, half of which he will serve on licence.

He has been in custody since November 2015 and has since, served more than half of his sentence.

He was disqualified from driving for two years and ordered to pay a £100 victim surcharge

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"Mr Pitt [the postman] lost his job as a result of the theft"

When will people learn