Pictured: Man who caused death of M6 highways worker after driving stolen car at 127mph
This is the man who drove at speeds of up to 127mph before crashing into a stationary vehicle on the M6 and killed the highways worker inside.
Denis Balaz, aged 29, has been jailed for more than nine years last Friday after he admitted causing the death of traffic management officer Kevin Jarvis by dangerous driving.
The fatal crash happened shortly after 5am on the northbound carriageway between junctions 14 and 15 of the M6 on February 26 of last year.
Balaz was driving at speeds exceeding 120mph in a black Audi A8 that had been stolen at knifepoint in Birmingham before careering through cones and smashing into the works Ford Focus of Mr Jarvis, which was displaying amber warning beacons.
Transport Safety Control Officer, Kevin Jarvis, aged 57 from Cannock, was sat in the parked car on an access slip road at Yarnfield at the time. He sadly died at the scene.
Balaz also pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving, driving a car other than in accordance with a licence, driving with no insurance, theft and wounding with intent. The latter two offences are not connected to the death of Mr Jarvis.
He was also sentenced to three and a half years for the wounding and was handed an extended driving ban of 14 years and three months.
Mr Jarvis, originally from Southampton, had been celebrating a family wedding just hours before the accident.
His wife, Julie, described him as her "husband, best friend, my support in every way, a wonderful step-dad and grandad and friend to all, there are no words to describe the pain of losing him."
Sentencing him at Stafford Crown Court, Judge John Edwards told Balaz that his victim "had many happy years ahead of him and was looking forward to many years of contented retirement with his wife"
He added: "The senseless decision you made to steal and then drive a high-powered vehicle at such intense speed compounds your criminality. You were driving without authority, a licence or insurance."
PC James Addison, from the serious collision investigation unit, said the sentence "sentence brings to an end what has been a long process for justice for the family of Kevin".
"Balaz made the decision to stab the owner of the car before driving away in it," he continued.
"He had every opportunity to stop the vehicle but instead chose to drive at dangerous speeds before swerving into a coned off area of the motorway where Kevin’s car was parked with its warning beacons lit.
"That decision cost a loving husband and father his life. No sentence will ever be sufficient for the family but I hope that Balaz understands that his actions have consequences, in this case tragic ones."
Balaz, a Slovakian national of no fixed address, is liable for automatic deportation due to the length of his prison sentence.
