A cyclist who rode a sports bike with no brakes was starting a jail sentence today/last night (Tues) after he ran down a four-year-old boy on a pedestrians-only road.

The child had been on holiday with his parents and was on his way to visit Legoland in Windsor, Berks., when the 21-year-old rider sped down the road and crashed into him, causing serious injuries.

Moments before the horrific collision which saw little Matteo Carlucci (both corr) trapped in the cycle as he was hurled into a traffic bollard, rider Richard Manners had sped past his parents with a "whoosh."

They shouted "Matteo, bike" to their son who was walking ahead in the pedestrian zone but it was too late and the boy was bowled over by Manners, suffering a broken arm which was jammed in the front wheel and friction burns all down his face. A tooth was also knocked out in the impact.

The cyclist appeared in the dock at Reading Crown Court where he admitted a charge of causing bodily harm by wilful misconduct. He was jailed for seven weeks by the judge who told him: "This offence is so serious that only a custodial sentence can be justified."

The judge was told that the small child had been rushed to hospital in excruciating pain while shouting "mummy, my arm, my arm" after the sudden collision, which had taken place in a cycle-free zone.

His parents Davide Carlucci (both corr) and Stella Watson were later told that their little boy had suffered a broken arm as well as a knocked-out tooth and burns on his face and head as a result of the incident. He suffered life changing injuries and was left with a dent in his head due to permanent muscle damage.

The family had been visiting Windsor, Berks., from their home in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland, on March 31 last year for Matteo's first trip to Legoland when his mum and dad had let him walk ahead of them on the pedestrian Peascod Street, believing it would be completely safe.

In a victim impact statement which was read out in court, Stella said she heard "a whooshing sound and quickly realised it was a man on a bike travelling fast."

She said she saw the 21-year-old headed towards her young son, who was walking in front of her, and yelled: "Matteo, bike!" just as his little body was mowed down and catapulted into a bollard.

"His arm and head were locked into the bike. We could see that his arm was trapped into the bike at his shoulder. He kept shouting: 'My arm, mummy! My arm!'

"Matteo then noticed that one of his teeth had been knocked out and he said: 'My tooth's gone too, mum.'

"He also had burn marks right up the side of his face and around the back of his head. He was in so much pain, he kept screaming.

"When we got into the ambulance Matteo was trying to look around. I told him the doctor was just looking at his injuries until the ambulance arrived at the hospital."

Miss Watson added that other children would often stare at her son's swollen head, broken arm and missing tooth when they walked in public after his release from hospital.

She said little Matteo still had many sleepless nights and had begun pleading with her to keep the crash a secret, saying: "Do not tell them about the man on the bike."

"Once the swelling and bruising went down I noticed a dent on Matteo's head which doctors said was muscle damage from his collision with the bicycle. It is a constant reminder of what happened.

"We saw a bike on the road the other day and he got such a start that he started crying uncontrollably. As a mother I have seen my child suffer in so many ways. His fear has built up after this incident."

The defendant, from Grendon Green, Stoke on Trent, Staffordshire, attended Reading Crown Court with short-cropped blond hair and stubble while wearing a light grey tracksuit and spat "f**k you" at the prosecution barrister and attending police officers as evidence was given.

Prosecution counsel Stephen Willmer said that on the day of the incident the child was running around quite happily after his mother had allowed him to roam the pedestrian road without holding her hand.

"She hears some whooshing sound, turns around and sees the defendant cycling past at speed. She calls out the words: 'Matteo, bike!' and at that moment he is hit by the defendant.

"His arm was trapped between the arch of the bicycle's wheel. He was smashed against a bollard and he lost a tooth.

"The defendant was challenged by the boy's father and then ran away," added the prosecutor.

Defence barrister Amer Asghar said that Manners had seen the little boy walking ahead of him and had shouted out "Watch!" before they collided.

Despite leaving the scene shortly after the collision, Mr Asghar added that Manners had walked into the police station 15 minutes later to tell them what happened.

He said: "He is not here to explain what went wrong but he is here to say sorry to the mother, the father and of course, young Matteo.

"He is himself the stepfather of two young children aged two and five years. He has been brought up in a care home environment throughout the majority of his young years. He had no family to support him.

"Whilst young Matteo may see what was described as a bad man on a bike Mr Manners is clearly remorseful to how he failed to make that turn.

"He knows he is going to prison today. He has brought his belongings with him and said goodbye to the young children. What happened on that fateful evening is certainly something he will never be able to forget."

Manners admitted one count of causing bodily harm by wilful misconduct. However the judge Miss Recorder Christine Agnew said this would not be counted as a significant mitigating circumstance, as he had given no indication of this plea before the first day of trial.

She added that his case was further affected by the fact that he already had a suspended sentence for a battery offence, of which he was convicted in 2016.

She said: "On March 31 last year Matteo Carlucci was walking down Peascod Road in Windsor, Berks., with his family. He was visiting Windsor and enjoying the privileges of a cycle-free zone, so his parents did not insist on holding his hand.

"You came cycling down that street at some speed, in breach of this pedestrianisation.

"In the CCTV footage, it is apparent you are unable to brake when Matteo runs into your path. You collided with him and he was trapped in the arch of your bicycle.

"I have read multiple times this morning a victim impact statement which goes into some detail the initial incident and the lasting impact it has had on Matteo and his family. It has had a lasting effect on a very young child in relation to bikes and cars in general.

"These offences are so serious that only a custodial sentence can be justified. I will sentence you to seven weeks in prison. You will serve up to half of your sentence in custody."

Mr Carlucci, who split up with Ms Watson last month and was not aware Manners had been jailed, said afterwards: "He could have killed my son. It was only luck that this wasn't a tragedy, nothing else.

"He has to pay for it because it could have been so much worse, I was so worried, but I trust the judge's decision."

He explained that the family had dropped off their luggage at the hotel before going out for dinner, ahead of their planned trip to Legoland the next day.

"Everything happened in a second," he added.

"We were just walking down the street and then [Manners] came out of nowhere like a rocket on his bike.

"In my eyes he did absolutely nothing to avoid the crash and at first I thought the worst, I thought he'd killed my son, but then I heard [Matteo] cry out. I was so worried."

Mr Carlucci explained that the family did eventually make it to the theme park, after two days spent in hospital with their injured son, but the holiday was ruined.

"We did make it Legoland afterwards and then went to London but the sad thing is we'll only remember the trip for the crash, not the happy times."

ends

MMMM

101120 GMT OCT 17