A MAN from Chillaton has been jailed after he paid two witnesses £250 to change their statements about a late night crash.

Fencing worker Daniel Honey offered the two young women cash after seeing them at court on a day when his trial was adjourned.

They made contact by Facebook and he later met one in a supermarket in Tavistock to hand over the money.

The witnesses were due to give evidence about a late night crash in Bradworthy in June 2015 in which Honey’s silver BMW car crashed into a cottage in the Square, causing £4,000 damage.

The car was driven off at speed but the two women, who were together at a nearby house, went out to investigate.

One said she saw the driver as he reversed away and recognised him as Honey, who she had been at school with. The other took his registration details and gave them to police.

After being paid the money, one of the two women contacted witness care and asked to change her statement, saying she was not sure of the identity of the driver.

She and her friend changed their minds again and contacted the police to confess. They were both cautioned.

Honey, aged 26, continues to deny being the driver of the car and his case of careless driving will be heard by North Devon magistrates later this year.

He admitted doing acts intending to pervert the course of justice and was jailed for three months by Judge Erik Salomonsen at Exeter Crown Court.

He told him:’You still have to face these motoring offences but today you are before the Crown Court for this much more serious offence.

‘Anyone who pays a witness to change their evidence strikes at the heart of the criminal justice system in this country. The courts inevitably must regard such offences as very serious.’

Sean Brunton, said the background to the case was an accident at 11.12pm on June 26, 2015 in which a silver BMW crashed into Forge Cottage in The Square in Bradworthy.

The elderly occupant was asleep in her ground floor bedroom when she was woken by the car hitting the wall so hard it caused £4,000 and buckled the window of her room.

She heard a screech of tyres as it reversed and sped off and the car had vanished by the time she went to investigate.

The two witnesses were drinking and listening to music at a nearby cottage and went out when they heard the noise. They saw the car reversing and then leaving the Square.

One recognised Honey, who had been in the year above her at school, and the other took the number plate. They both saw the car again a few minutes later when it stopped briefly before driving off.

The damaged car was found by police at Manor Park, Bradworthy, but Honey was not traced until later. He denied being the driver and said the car must have been stolen.

The case went to court at Barnstaple Magistrates on November 28, 2016 but was adjourned because there was not enough time to hear it.

While at court Honey saw the women, one of whom messaged him on Facebook. He responded by calling them and asking them to change their statements.

Mr Brunton said he handed over the money at a meeting with one of the witnesses at Morrisons in Tavistock and she tried to change her statement before changing her mind and admitting what she had done to the police.

Honey was not represented but said he still maintains he was not the driver. He said the idea of paying £250 had come from one of the women and he accepted it because he wanted to get the case out of the way.

He told the judge :’Im very sorry. This was completely out of character for me. It is not what I intended. It has ruined my life at the moment.’