Ethan Burdett, 67, of Ipswich Haven Marina, Ipswich, pleaded guilty to causing the death of four people due to careless driving when he appeared at Chelmsford Crown Court on Tuesday 16 April.
Roads Policing officers were called to the M25 in Waltham Abbey shortly after 6.15pm on 23 August 2021, following reports a lorry had collided with a minibus.
An investigation by our Serious Collision Investigation Unit established Ethan Burdett had been travelling between Junction 27 to Junction 26.
As he approached the exit slip road to junction 26, he failed to react to stationary traffic queuing in lane 1 and collided with the rear of the minibus which shunted forward and struck a car.
When officers arrived, they saw that the minibus and lorry both had sustained substantial damage.
Of the 11 passengers in the minibus – who were returning to London following a day trip to Southend – four passengers were seriously injured; three additional passengers and the driver of the car all sustained minor injuries.
Sadly, 31-year-old Abigael Muamba, from Edmonton Green, 60-year-old Dexter Augustus, from Waltham Forest, and 59-year-old Jennifer Smith, from Stratford, all died in the collision.
Lisa Gardiner, 44, from Walthamstow, later died of her injuries.
