Double death crash charge; Goalie in court over tragic brothers

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle, England), June 9, 2008

Byline: BY HELEN BAIN

THE mother of two young boys killed in a motorway crash attended court today to see a professional footballer charged with causing their deaths.

Arron Peak, 10, and his brother Ben, eight, were killed on the M6 in Staffordshire on Saturday morning as they made their way to the Silverstone racetrack for a day out.

The Toyota Previa people carrier in which they were travelling with their father and three friends was hit by a black Range Rover shortly before 5.45am.

The Range Rover's driver, Plymouth Argyle goalkeeper Luke McCormick, appeared at Fenton Magistrates' Court in Stoke-on-Trent today charged with causing death by dangerous driving, driving with excess alcohol and driving without insurance.

The boys' father, Phil Peak, 37, who was at the wheel of the Toyota, was left seriously injured.

He sustained a suspected broken neck and back and was treated at the University Hospital of North Staffordshire.

Three other occupants of the Toyota were treated at the same hospital for minor injuries.

Amanda Peak, 30, the mother of the two boys, arrived at court today clutching a framed photograph of her sons.

She said yesterday: "No parent should have to go through the nightmare we have gone through."

She added: "Phil, my husband, is not only having to come to terms with the loss of his sons but he also has to cope with the serious injuries he sustained."

The family, from Partington, Manchester, have been "devastated" by the crash, she said.

Coventry-born McCormick, 24, is a former England youth international and was twice voted Argyle's young player of the season.

Witnesses are asked to call the Central Motorways Police Group on (0121) 626 1831.

CAPTION(S):

ACCUSED: Plymouth's Luke McCormick; TRAGIC: Mum Amanda Peak, above, breaks down at a press conference, and, below, with her two boys and husband Phil