A man (28), who knocked down a grandmother pushing a double stroller with two children causing her serious injury, pleaded guilty to using a vehicle in a dangerous condition, Craigavon Magistrate Court hears.

Marius Covaci, of Parkmore, Craigavon, appeared before the court on Wednesday pleading guilty to using a vehicle in a dangerous condition and three counts of having defective tyres. A charge of dangerous driving was withdrawn.

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Emergency services at the scene of a road traffic collision at Tullygally Road East near Meadowbrook crossroads, Craigavon, Co Armagh.

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The court heard a woman had been struck by a vehicle while pushing a buggy on the Tullygally Road East on December 6, 2023.

Police saw the woman being tended to my members of the public at the Meadowbrook junction and she had "a large gash on her forehead where her skull appeared to be exposed”. It required five stitches. She also suffered a broken pelvis, fluid on her leg plus “cuts and bruises all over her body”.

A Prosecutor revealed the vehicle driven by the defendant had defective tyres – two at the front and one at the rear. The vehicle was seized for examination which found worn brake pads.

During interview the defendant said he had got the car from a mechanic who said it had no defects. He was returning home from work, “was tired and was driving slowly”.

The injured party said she was taking her grandchild to the nursery. She said she was at the top of the road close to the Meadowbrook junction and looked in both directions “multiple times” before deciding to cross.

She said: “As I was in the middle of the road I again looked to my left and noticed headlights coming towards me on my left. I was then struck by a vehicle but I can’t remember anything after this.”

“The injured party said that since the incident she had trouble sleeping. The injuries she suffered have caused a big impact on her day-to-day life,” the Prosecutor revealed.

She also shared a statement from a witness who said: “I noticed a woman on my left, pushing a double stroller with two children inside. Both the woman and I were waiting for the traffic to pass. I stopped on the traffic island because I noticed a Honda approaching.

“The woman on my left did not stop but continued walking across the road. At that moment I noticed the car hit her and the stroller. The impact must have been big because the woman fell about three metres away. The car hit the stroller too which rolled over to the left with the children.”

District Judge Rice said the defendant is very lucky he wasn’t facing a dangerous driving charge.

Covaci’s lawyer said his client faces no offences in relation to his driving and CCTV helped "resolve” this but there are issues in relation to the condition of the car.

The barrister said his client is a delivery driver and needs his licence for work, dropping his wife to work and his young child to school.

“This could have been a very different story and could have been dealing with much more serious injuries,” the District Judge said imposing three penalty points and a £50 fine for each of the defective tyre charges.

For the other charge she gave him six penalty points and fined him £300 plus the £15. Offender Levy.