A man who caused the death of a man who was riding a motorbike near Cirencester has been sentenced and banned from driving.
Patrick Kirwin, aged 81 and from Cirencester, caused the death of 53-year-old Tony Stepp from South Cerney on 5 October 2024.
Tony had been on a group ride between Cirencester and Tetbury with two other motorcyclists he was friends with, which they often did together over a 10-year period.
They were on the A433 Tetbury Road near a crossroads close to The Thames Head Inn when Kirwin turned right at the junction towards Kemble and across the path of the motorcyclists.
Kirwin’s Audi A4 collided with Tony, who was riding a Honda Fireblade, at around 9.15am and emergency services were called.
Members of the public stopped to help Tony, including an off-duty police officer. However despite all of their efforts, Tony was pronounced dead at the scene.
At Gloucester Crown Court on Friday 13 March His Honour Judge Ian Lawrie sentenced Kirwin to eight months in prison, suspended for 18 months, and he was also banned from driving for 18 months.
Following an investigation by Gloucestershire Police’s Serious Collision Investigation Team, Kirwin was charged in connection with the incident. He pleaded guilty on 9 February this year (2026) to causing Tony’s death by careless driving.
Tony’s wife Tina Stepp wrote a victim impact statement which she read to the court.
She said: “On the 5 October 2024 mine and my whole family’s life was destroyed. The best part of me died on that day.
“Not only have I lost the love of my life and best friend, but everything. I can’t even begin to put into words the massive void in our lives now.
“Tony, or Tone to everyone that knew him, was everything to us. Tone was a loving, kind and thoughtful husband and father, and he would do anything for his family or friends.
“The knowledge that Tone’s death was caused by a split second of carelessness makes the pain all the harder to bear. What happened was not an unavoidable tragedy, it was preventable, and that weighs very heavy on us.
“I still regularly get flashbacks to the day when two police officers came to my door to tell me the news. There are better days and worse days, but a day doesn’t go by when I don’t think about hearing the news that I had lost Tone. We had such a lovely family, and this is truly the worst feeling imaginable.”
In mitigation the court was told how Kirwin was of good character and had no previous driving offences.
Following the sentencing, Sergeant Williams from Gloucestershire Police’s Serious Collision Investigation Team said: “Tony and his friends had been doing everything they could to make themselves as safe as possible. The trio were riding in a staggered formation with their lights on in a bid to make themselves more visible.
“This collision was entirely avoidable if more time had been spent looking out for others on the road, and I ask motorists to look twice for motorcyclists and cyclists, particularly at junctions.
“These road users are more vulnerable, and I encourage people to be vigilant and look out for them as the numbers of motorcyclists and cyclists on our roads will continue to increase with the arrival of spring.”
