A TEENAGER has walked free from court after a judge told him his was not to blame for the death of his friend – Amir Ahmed Kassim of Duffryn - last August.

Mr Kassim and another 17-year-old – who cannot be named for legal reasons – had been riding mopeds in Wentloog Avenue, Cardiff, when the 25-year-old fell under the wheels of a 24-tonne lorry on August 10 last year.

The teenager had previously pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and appeared at Cardiff Crown Court today for sentencing.

The court heard the pair were attempting to overtake a lorry on the single-carriageway road when they saw another HGV coming towards them in the opposite lane. But their scooters did not have the power to accelerate fast enough and, although the teenager managed to avoid harm, Mr Kassim was killed.

Hilary Roberts, defending, said his client was “clearly traumatised” by the accident and had said Mr Kassim was “like a brother to him”.

“This is something that has had an immense affect on him”, he said.

Judge Tom Crowther said attempting to overtake the lorry on such low-powered vehicles was “a foolish undertaking”.

But he said there was no suggestion they had been racing each other when the accident happened.

“You were young men enjoying the freedom of being out on the road,” he said.

“It’s a rite of passage.”

He added they had “badly misjudged” the capabilities of their scooters.

“It is clear you both panicked,” he said.

“It is likely he took fright. That would have been a human and normal thing to happen.”

Reiterating that he did not believe the teenager was responsible for his friend’s death, the judge added: “This was not a prolonged case of bad driving, but a single bad decision.

“The risk you posed was primarily to yourself.”

He handed the teenager an 18-month, 36-hour Youth Rehabilitation Order and banned him from driving for 12 months. He has also been ordered to carry out an extended re-test once the 12-month disqualification ends and pay a court surcharge.