Bus driver who killed pensioners in West Lothian horror crash had Parcelforce delivery job before sentence

A bus driver who killed a pensioner couple in a horrific crash got a job delivering parcels for the Royal Mail while he was waiting to face justice, the Edinburgh Evening News can reveal.

An investigation has been launched after we told Parcelforce Worldwide bosses of Stephen Jones’ conviction, his previous offending, and that he was in prison awaiting sentence.

The postal giant admitted bosses had no idea they had employed a driver with a history of offending and who was about to appear in the High Court on double-death charges.

Jones is facing years behind bars after he admitted causing the deaths of Ian and Helen McKay by dangerous driving.

The 57-year-old repeatedly drove a bus onto the opposing carriageway and veered into the path of the McKay’s car.

Mr and Mrs McKay, aged 78 and 79, from Bathgate, suffered multiple injuries and were pronounced dead at the scene. Four passengers who were travelling on the bus Jones was driving from Linlithgow to Livingston were also injured.

A judge heard passengers feared Jones, of Whitburn, was going too fast on the rural road in the moments before the crash in January last year.

Footage from the E&M Horsburgh Ltd bus was shown at the High Court in Edinburgh of the lead up to the crash, including efforts by Mr McKay to avoid the collision as he steered towards the edge of the B792 road, near Torphichen. Both vehicles ended up in a farmer’s field following the collision.

Jones, who has previous convictions for speeding and careless driving, was interviewed by police and said he was temporarily blinded by the sun.

After he was charged by police, he said: “All I can say is sorry.”

Jones left E&M Horsburgh and signed up with an agency, using his driving qualifications to land a role at Parcelforce Worldwide’s depot in Sighthill.

He was on bail and facing prison when he pled guilty but told work colleagues that he was “just taking a day of” and failed to tell bosses of the court case.

A depot insider said: “The first we knew was when we saw him in the Evening News. He said he was just taking a day off. I shudder to think about that man driving one of our vehicles.”

Parcelforce Worldwide confirmed they were unaware of Jones’ court case or his previous motoring offences.

A spokesperson said: “Parcelforce Worldwide and the supply agencies it uses run a comprehensive vetting system for all our drivers. We have asked the agency who supplied this individual to urgently investigate its vetting process.

“We are also conducting our own investigation.

“As part of this investigation we are looking at ways of picking up on impending prosecutions that do not appear on a criminal record check.

“Our initial findings indicate that no Parcelforce Worldwide manager was aware of any impending prosecutions relating to this individual at the time of his employment. He is no longer supplied to Parcelforce Worldwide as a driver.”

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