A Croydon public schoolboy who killed his best friend in a drink driving spree has this week begun a 12-month sentence behind bars.

Tom Vanderzee died in the accident on April 4 last year when Patrick Wilmot lost control of his mother's Citroen ZX as the pair sped through country lanes near his home.

The Old Bailey heard how the vehicle smashed through a hedge, struck trees and rolled over, killing 17-year-old Vanderzee from Croydon.

Wilmot, now 18, was later found to be nearly twice over the legal driving limit having drunk six cans of lager and a glass of wine as he played host to a party of friends. His parents were spending the weekend in Cornwall.

The devastated teenager, from Woodfield Place, Harps Oak Lane, Merstham, Surrey, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving.

Judge David Paget sentenced him to a 12-month stay in Feltham Young Offenders Institute, disqualified him from driving for three years and ordered that he retake a driving test before being allowed on the roads again.

He said: "If I had only your interests to consider, I have no doubt that punishment is not necessary. I am sure you will be punished for the rest of your life by the recollection of that mad escapade."

But he said he had a public duty to impose a custodial sentence and added that the offence was made worse because of the amount Wilmot had drunk and because he was not insured to drive the car.

Teachers from Whitgift School in South Croydon, where both boys were pupils, gave character witnesses for the defendant, saying Wilmot had daily tormented himself with guilt and regularly wished he had died.

Experts believe the car was being driven through the streets of Merstham at more than 70mph at the time.

Three hours after the accident Wilmot still had a reading of 107mg of alcohol in 100ml of blood, the legal limit being 80mg.

Prosecuting counsel Gino Connor said that after the accident Wilmot was screaming: "Get my friend out...is he allright?"

William Boyce, defending, said Wilmot had been exceptionally frank with police.

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