A lorry driver who was on a video call with his wife when he ploughed into stationary motorway traffic and killed a father-of-two has been jailed for 11 years.
Zvonko Tomisa, from Vidovec in Croatia, was at the wheel of the MAN lorry when he hit a Nissan Qashqai driven by 36-year-old Arran McManus on November 25 last year.
Mr McManus, from Ashford, was forced into the rear of a Scania articulated HGV because of the impact, shunting the car forward.
Maidstone Crown Court heard Tomisa, 58, had been heading up the motorway from Dover docks at a speed of around 55mph when he failed to notice the standstill traffic between junctions 9 and 8 at Lenham, near Maidstone.
Vehicles had piled up on the London-bound carriageway following a previous, unrelated accident that required a rolling 50mph speed restriction.
Dashcam footage showed Tomisa did not start braking until less than a second before he drove into the back of Mr McManus at approximately 48mph, crushing his car.
Prosecutor Andrew Boulsfield said the professional lorry driver's 'prolonged' lack of concentration and inattention to the road for approximately 28 seconds was explained by an examination of his phone by police post-arrest.
Data showed within 10 minutes of him setting off from the docks at 7.39am he had messaged his wife, Marina, asking her to call him.
Vehicles had piled up on the Londonbound carriageway following a previous, unrelated accident that required a rolling 50mph speed restriction. Tomisa's lorry is pictured
Dashcam footage showed Tomisa did not start braking until less than a second before he drove into the back of Mr McManus at approximately 48mph, crushing his car
Motorists from other vehicles could be seen running out to the scene to help following the crash
He then phoned her but the call went unanswered. This was followed by a video call with her at 7.54am that lasted just over two minutes.
The court heard there were further calls and messages with other contacts, including one about where he was expected to take his load in central London, followed by more attempts to reach Mrs Tomisa.
At 8.26am, having received his earlier messages, Mrs Tomisa video called her husband and the fatal collision occurred.
Mr Boulsfield said Tomisa's camera was recorded as being on at that time.
Mr McManus, who lived with his partner and their children in Ashford and coached local youth football, had been on his way to work. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Tomisa, whose wife was due to have an operation that day, was also injured but tests for alcohol and drugs proved negative.
Following his arrest, he initially denied a charge of causing death by dangerous driving, only to change his plea to guilty at a hearing last month shortly before standing trial.
Mr McManus's fiancée, Ashleigh Devlin, appeared in court yesterday alongside his parents.
Tomisa (pictured), whose wife was due to have an operation that day, was also injured but tests for alcohol and drugs proved negative
Mr McManus (pictured), who was a former pupil of the Harvey Grammar School in Folkestone, coached at Kennington Juniors FC
In victim impact statements read to the court, they described how their lives had been 'completely sledgehammered' by his 'sudden and preventable' death.
Jailing Tomisa, a professional lorry driver for 38 years and with no previous convictions, Judge Catherine Moore said his actions that day were not a momentary loss of attention but involved prolonged use of a phone in 'a highly distracting' way.
'Analysis of your phone showed that during the 56 minutes before the collision, there were multiple incoming and outgoing voice calls, messaging exchanges, messaging via Facebook Messenger, repeated camera activations consistent with video calling and there was active communication through a video call immediately before and at collision,' she told him through an interpreter.
'Those actions meant you were inevitably focussing on and interacting with the screen, engaging in a video call with your wife despite the fact you were driving a large vehicle on a motorway.
'It may well have been you were discussing a medical matter or a matter about which there was some anxiety. But that is no excuse.
'It is abundantly clear your entirely senseless actions meant your attention was distracted. You plainly assumed your driving would be unaffected by your mobile telephone use and that the rules somehow did not apply to you.
'You were not concentrating on the road. Your failure to do so had tragic and entirely avoidable consequences.'
Tomisa will have to serve two-thirds of his jail term before he is released. He has also been banned from driving for 14 years and four months - to take account of his time in custody - and will be required to take an extended test before he can drive in the UK again.
Judge Moore accepted he had shown remorse, and that his acknowledgement of responsibility would last forever.
At the time of the fatal crash, Ms Devlin released a tribute to her partner of 15 years, describing herself as 'heartbroken' at the loss of her 'soulmate and best friend'.
She wrote: 'Arran was our whole life and more. He was the most wonderful dad to our two incredible children, and he was so proud of them both and loved them both so deeply.'
'Arran will be sorely missed by his entire family circle.'
Mr McManus, who was a former pupil of the Harvey Grammar School in Folkestone, coached at Kennington Juniors FC.
In their statement, the club described him as 'patient, thoughtful and inspiring' and someone who 'embodied what it means to be a great coach, leader, and mentor'.
The club has also started a fundraiser to support Mr McManus's family.