Two friends have been sentenced to long prison terms in the United Kingdom after they were found guilty of killing a Nigerian national Sylvester Abayomi during a car crash while filming themselves inhaling nitrous oxide at a speed of 223 kilometres per hour.

Reports noted that the incident occurred in Manchester in the early hours of March 9 when two individuals Uways Hussain (the driver) and Usmon Mahmood (passenger), ran a red light in their VW Golf GTI before smashing into Mr Abayomi’s Volvo S40.

The 50-year-old victim, who was reportedly on his way to work that morning when he was struck, suffered severe chest injuries and died later that day. 

A video of Messrs Hussain and Mahmood filming themselves sucking on balloons in the car and reaching a high speed while driving on the wrong side of the road with only one hand on the steering moments before the accident was shown in court.

It was learnt that the suspects were caught on an emergency call from an Apple Watch worn by Mr Hussain discussing how to cover up the incident by reporting the car as stolen. They also discussed who would claim responsibility for driving the car and how to remove their DNA from the car. 

But they were unaware that the watch had automatically dialed 999 after detecting a collision. Officers subsequently tracked the suspects using the watch and found Mr Hussain hiding in a garden. Mr Mahmood was also caught at a different garden.

During sentencing at the Manchester Crown Court, Judge Nicholas Dean KC described the transcript of the call as ‘chilling.’

He added, “I have seen CCTV images and video recordings on phones and they are terrifying. You drove at extreme speeds, seemingly up to very nearly 140mph, on roads which were by and large subject to 30mph speed limits, far, far in excess of any safe or lawful limit.”

In her victim impact statement at the hearing, Mr Ayobami’s partner Denise Doyle said “Sylvester was simply on his way to work. He was an ordinary hard working man. He should have returned home to me that day, but because of your actions, he never did. 

“Sylvester had kissed me and said goodbye and that he loved me. I never knew this would be the last time. It didn’t feel like it had really happened. A nightmare where I was in a box and I couldn’t get out.”

The judge eventually sentenced Mr Hussain, 20, to 11 years and eight months’ imprisonment for causing death by dangerous driving, while Mahmood, 23, was jailed for 12 years and nine months for aiding and abetting causing death by dangerous driving.

The Greater Manchester Police said the case was believed to be one of the first in the UK in which a passenger was convicted of aiding and abetting death by dangerous driving.