A motorist who mowed down pedestrians in a Christmas Day rampage which left one man dead said he was a “coward” for not stopping after the collision.
Anthony Gilheaney, 30, is on trial at the Old Bailey accused of using his Mercedes to run over five pedestrians in London’s West End during the early hours of December 25 2024, killing 25-year-old Aidan Chapman and leaving four others seriously injured.
The collision happened as a drunk Gilheaney circled back to a club to try to pick up his pregnant girlfriend.
Gilheaney told the court he had been attacked by a group of men earlier that night and, although not in control of the vehicle, did not intend to hurt anyone.
He said he looked back, then forward, saw a moped in front of him and swerved, and that “by the time I have swerved and engaged my brake I have accidentally hit the accelerator”.
Mr Chapman was hit full on, suffering catastrophic brain damage, and died in hospital on New Year’s Eve.
Defence counsel James Scobie KC asked Gilheaney: “Who is responsible for his death?”
The defendant replied: “Me, 100% – I was driving dangerous and recklessly.”
He described his speed as “way too fast” and said he should have been looking “out ahead of me”.
He added that he pressed the brake “when it is too late”.
Gilheaney added: “I’m a coward for driving and leaving a poor young man to die.
“I was a coward. I should have stopped there and then. I panicked and had to get away.”
The court heard that Gilheaney had no clear memory about what he did at the time but CCTV and dashcam footage had since helped him remember.
He said it showed him “driving at speed through the streets of London to get away from the police and the area” before abandoning the Mercedes.
Gilheaney, an Irish traveller from Harlow, Essex, denies murder, wounding with intent, three counts of attempted murder, two counts of causing grievous bodily harm with intent and one count of attempting to cause grievous bodily harm.
Jurors have been told he had already admitted to dangerous driving.
Gilheaney was drunk when he left a nightclub in the early hours of Christmas Day 2024 and was “beside himself with rage” when he launched a series of unprovoked and violent attacks in the area of Shaftesbury Avenue, the prosecution has said.
He hit five pedestrians with his car – some of whom he targeted for racist and homophobic reasons, it is alleged.
Police eventually found him face down and passed out in Lincoln’s Inn Fields in Holborn, central London, jurors heard.
At the time he knew he had hit someone, there had been a chase and he had hit people outside the club.
After giving a series of statements to the police which made no sense, he told the court: “I did not have a clue at all what I was talking about.”
Earlier, the jury watched footage of Gilheaney being beaten by a group of men after he had punched a man in the face, used racial slurs and hit out with a screwdriver handle.
The father of three said the man had made threats about his mother’s house.
He said the attack had impacted on his driving skills and there was “confusion” over the gears. He added: “I did not know what I was doing.”
He told the jury: “When I sat down in the vehicle, it was at this point that I started to panic and I was braking and was engaging the gears and did not know if I was going forward or going back.
“I was holding the brakes and gears at the same time. I did not want to stay still because I was panicking, could not see what was happening around and was scared the doors would open.
“I was panicking and engaging the gears.
“I could not see who was around me – the attackers – and I was scared of the police because I had a warrant for my arrest and knew I was going going back to prison.”
Later CCTV footage showed Gilheaney, shirtless from the fight and with blood around his neck, kicking out at a passing car, and said he was “struggling” to stay on his feet and was “very wobbly”.
He said when he was back in the car he felt his “body had deteriorated” while he drove, noting: “I lost strength and energy in my body to hold myself up.”
He added that “my body went like jelly” as he was at the wheel.
Gilheaney described himself as being “confused and in a state”, saying he had lost all sense of knowing where he was as he still needed to pick up his girlfriend.
The trial continues.
