A motorcyclist who suffered serious injuries in a crash with a police inspector’s car told a jury yesterday he remembered nothing about the incident.

Oronde Wilson told the Supreme Court he knew he was on his way to see his daughter when the crash happened on September 19, 2017, but only because it was his routine.

Mr Wilson added that he was unconscious for nearly a week after the crash.

He said: “I just remember waking up confused and disoriented and messed up.

“My head was hurting. My hands were tied to the hospital bed because I was combative and trying to pull out the tubes.”

Mr Wilson told the court he had lost a toe and a foot was so badly broken it needed steel rods put in it.

He added that he also suffered a punctured lung and brain injuries in the collision, which had affected his memory.

Mr Wilson said: “My psychologist said I have brain injuries. Some are going to heal, but some are not. Some I just have to deal with.”

He said he walks with a limp as a result of his injuries.

Barry Richards, a 50-year-old inspector with the Bermuda Police Service, has denied causing the injuries by driving without due care and attention.

Prosecutors earlier alleged that Mr Richards was on his mobile phone at the time of the crash and failed to check if the road was clear before turning from North Shore Road into My Lord’s Bay Road in Hamilton Parish.

Marc Daniels, defence lawyer for Mr Richards, questioned Mr Wilson about his driving history.

Mr Wilson admitted several convictions for speeding and other traffic offences between 2013 and 2016, but insisted he had had no traffic tickets for more than a year before the collision.

He also accepted that the bike he was riding at the time of the crash was not licensed, but said it was insured.

Mr Wilson added: “I had just insured my bike and I was trying to get it licensed but the original engine that came with the bike seized so I tried to use another engine.”

He explained that the bike was failed by the Transport Control Department because of the new engine, although the new engine had not been modified.

Witness Corte Gibbons told the court that he was on the phone with Mr Richards when the collision happened.

Mr Gibbons explained he was working with an internet provider on the day of the crash and was scheduled to carry out an installation at Mr Richards’s home.

He said he called Mr Richards when he left his previous assignment to get directions to his home in the My Lord’s Bay area and later phoned back to tell him he was on his way.

Mr Gibbons said that during the call he heard Mr Richards shout a profanity, then a loud bang and scraping sounds.

He said: “It was just like a crash. A horrendous sound. It had me a little shook up because it really sounded like something bad had happened.”

Mr Gibbons said he stayed on the line for a minute or two and asked if Mr Richards was all right, but got no reply.

He told the court he heard someone pick up the phone and hang up.

Mr Gibbons said he started to drive back to his office but when he reached the entrance to My Lord’s Bay Road he saw the crash scene.

He added: “It seemed to me that my customer was on the bike just from what I had heard. From the bang and the slide.”

Mr Gibbons said he later discovered that Mr Richards was in the car and that the man on the bike was Mr Wilson — his tenant and the son of a good friend.

He told Mr Daniels the identity of the rider did change things for him, but he denied a suggestion that he wanted to ensure Mr Richards was convicted to help the chances of a civil claim.

He said: “The dynamic changed in that I thought it was my customer in the road. It changed from a customer of mine to a family member of mine.”

The trial continues.

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