Police are investigating the death of a hugely popular lorry driver. Gary Rees from Caerphilly was badly hurt on July 4 last year when another lorry driver travelled on the wrong side of the road and hit his HGV head-on.
Mr Rees, who earned a reputation as a "gentle giant" across almost four decades working on pub and club doors in his hometown, was able to leave hospital the day after the Oakdale crash. The 55-year-old dad appeared to be recovering over the following weeks and we interviewed him on July 28 about his experience, but that night he died suddenly at home.
Mariusz Korkosz, who was physically unhurt in the crash, had been sentenced on July 20 to a 20-week jail term after he admitted causing Mr Rees serious injury by dangerous driving. The 46-year-old, who lived in Poland, had 14 years' experience of driving HGVs across Europe. He said he had a coughing fit while moving onto the wrong side of the B4251 and hitting Mr Rees' lorry head-on, but Newport magistrates rejected the claim.
