Best friends were heading home from Cheshire Oaks shopping trip when a reckless 93mph driver caused utter devastation

Two best friends were heading home from a Christmas shopping trip at Cheshire Oaks when a speeding driver killed them both in a devastating crash.

Ellie Crossley was driving along with her best friend Rebecca Doughty in the passenger seat when Benjamin Lewis ploughed his BMW into their car at high speed on November 25 2021.

Chester Crown Court heard how Lewis, 31, had hit speeds of 93mph in a 60mph zone in what were described as 'poor conditions', along the A5117 in Dunkirk.

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At around 9.30pm, he then 'lost control' of the BMW 420D, which crossed the double solid white lines and swerved into the opposite lane. His car collided with Ellie's Citroen DS3 which was travelling in the opposite direction.

Ellie and Rebecca, both from Wales, tragically died at the scene of the horror crash.

The families of Ellie and Rebecca released a joint statement paying tribute to the pair four days after the crash. They said: "The girls, both aged 20, were travelling home from a Christmas shopping trip when they were tragically involved in a fatal road traffic collision.

"Both families, and their friends, have been left truly devastated by this tragic event and will sadly miss them. Close friends for their short lives, they will be in our hearts forever."

Following the collision, an investigation was launched by the Serious and Complex Collision Investigation Unit at Cheshire Police. As part of their enquiries, a forensic collision investigator was enlisted to reconstruct the collision and the events leading up to it in order to establish the full circumstances.

Lewis was arrested and subsequently charged with two counts of death