Beloved delivery driver murdered trying to stop thief escaping with his van
01.12.2023 - 17:21
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
A man has been jailed for life with a minimum of 32 years for the murder of a delivery driver.
Mark Lang, 54, suffered fatal injuries after being dragged hundreds of metres by his vehicle while attempting to prevent Christopher Elgifari, 31, from escaping. Mr Lang, of Cyncoed, parked in Laytonia Avenue in the Cathays area of Cardiff at around 12.40pm on March 28 this year, Cardiff Crown Court heard.
The father-of-two was at the door of a house he was delivering a parcel to when Elgifari jumped in the unlocked van which still had the key in the ignition. Elgifari drove the vehicle at a high speed and turned it around at the end of the street before speeding up and hitting Mr Lang.
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Instead of stopping, he drove the van for another 700 metres with Mr Lang trapped under it. Emergency services were quickly alerted while Mr Lang was taken to University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff.
Mr Lang passed away in the hospital on April 15, surrounded by family and friends. While Elgifari, of Aberdare, admitted to manslaughter he was convicted of murder and robbery by a jury in a unanimous verdict.
Mr Justice Griffiths jailed Elgifari for life and ordered him to serve a minimum of 32 years in prison. The judge told him: “Mark Lang was well-known and well-liked as a delivery driver, who had for 15 years been delivering parcels to local residents.
“You murdered him. He was only 54. You took a son away from his mother. You bereaved his partner of 23 years. You deprived his two daughters of their father, a sister of her