Driver sentenced to 10 years and 9 months in prison for causing death of his wife

Asen Kurtev was sentenced after previously admitting one charge of causing death by dangerous driving and four charges of causing serious injury by dangerous driving following the two-vehicle collision on the A16 between Kirton and Sutterton roundabouts in March 2024.

Reporting the outcome of the investigation, Lincolnshire Police say that Kurtev was travelling towards Spalding on the A16 about 6.50am on March 4, 2024 when the Vauxhall Zafira he was driving collided with an oncoming Volkswagen Scirocco. Kurtev, who was driving his wife and three colleagues to work, was running late when the collision occurred.

Police say Kurtev’s driving led to the death of his wife who was in the front passenger seat and serious injuries to his three passengers in the rear of his vehicle. He also caused serious injuries to the driver of the oncoming Volkswagen.

Extensive investigation had been carried out by Lincolnshire Police’s Serious and Forensic Collision Investigation Units. Technical examinations of the vehicles found no defects that could have contributed to the collision.

Police say witness evidence obtained in the investigation established that Kurtev had been driving erratically prior to the collision by overtaking multiple vehicles in heavy traffic and forcing his way through the traffic.

Kurtev had overtaken other vehicles as he headed towards Spalding and then carried out a further overtake colliding head-on with an oncoming Volkswagen, say police, despite the Volkswagen driver braking and steering to try and avoid a collision.

They state that in interview, Kurtev admitted responsibility for the collision, stating that he and his passengers were late for work and he had failed to properly see the approaching Volkswagen as he overtook other vehicles.

The collision killed Kurtev’s wife, Sofka Mitkova, 39, and seriously injured his other three passengers, all of whom sustained multiple fractures, two of them requiring surgical interventions. The driver of the Volkswagen also sustained multiple serious injuries in the collision including fractures and has since undergone surgery for his injuries.

Kurtev, 46, of Carlton Road, Boston, was sentenced on Thursday, June 26 at Lincoln Crown Court to 10 years and nine months imprisonment, having pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving and causing serious injury by dangerous driving. He was also banned from driving for a total of 12 years and two months and must take an extended re-test before being allowed to drive again.

Detective Sergeant Adam Doona, from our Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said after the sentencing: “The selfish actions and utter disregard for others that Kurtev displayed have rightly attracted a substantial sentence from the court.”