Thailand hit-and-run victim’s
family may never get justice

A Coroner yesterday ruled that Bob Leedham, 58, died as a result of the road traffic collision he was involved in on January 26, 2014.

Mr Leedham, of Elmwood Street, Saville Park, suffered fatal injuries when the motor scooter he was riding was hit by a white van which failed to stop on the island of Koh Samui.

His wife Gemma was on the back of the scooter and suffered significant but non-life threatening injuries.

And speaking at the inquest held at Halifax Town Hall, Coroner’s officer Rod Holmes said: “Mr Leedham’s partner is led to believe that this is a regular occurrence in Thailand that drivers don’t stop after accidents and they may never find the driver.”

The inquest heard that Mr Leedham, who ran the Something Sweet sweetshop in Hebden Bridge, had suffered multiple injuries, including a fractured skull, broken ribs and internal bleeding. He also had cuts and bruises all over his body. A death certificate issued in Thailand said Mr Leedham had died “due to a car crash accident”. But a post mortem carried out when Mr Leedham’s body was brought back to England revealed that the cause of death was multiple traumatic injuries.

And assistant Coroner for the Bradford district Mary Burke said the evidence she had heard led her to conclude that Mr Leedham died as a result of a road traffic collision.

Mr Leedham was chairman of the Halifax Sunday Football League and was a referee for many years.

He used to work as a press operative at the Halifax Courier before running his own printing business in Sowerby Bridge and eventually taking on the sweetshop in Hebden Bridge.

Hundreds of people lined the street of Hebden Bridge for the start of Mr Leedham’s funeral cortege, whilst over 1,000 packed into Halifax Minster for the ceremony last February.