Two men have been jailed for deliberately running over a delivery driver in Sunderland, leaving him with permanent damage. Michael Gill, 42, received three years and seven months at Newcastle Crown Court, while Gary Rarity, 43, was sentenced to seven months, Northumbria Police confirmed.
The attack unfolded on the morning of 16 December 2025 on Stannington Gardens, where the victim, a man in his 50s, was delivering packages. Gill climbed into the driver’s seat of the van with the intent to steal it, and when the delivery driver tried to intervene, Gill ran him over before speeding off. Rarity, who had been waiting nearby, then got behind the wheel of the abandoned vehicle and drove away, leaving the victim in the road with life-threatening head injuries. He spent a week in intensive care and has only recently left hospital, needing ongoing support for permanent harm. Detective Inspector Ash Loader, who led the investigation, said: “Using a vehicle to carry out an act of violence is completely unacceptable, and this case is a stark reminder of the lifelong consequences of what can happen when a car comes in contact with a human being.”
Gill, of Cairo Street, Sunderland, admitted causing serious injury by dangerous driving, theft, driving whilst disqualified, and driving with no insurance. He received an additional driving ban of four years and nine and a half months. Rarity, of Brick Garth, Houghton, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit theft, driving whilst disqualified, and driving with no insurance, and was handed a two-year and ten-week ban. Both men were already disqualified from driving when they carried out the theft. The stolen vehicle was later found on Aysgarth Avenue, and enquiries showed the pair had met nearby to transfer packages before abandoning it.
The pair initially denied any involvement but changed their pleas to guilty at Newcastle Crown Court in April 2026, sparing the victim a trial. Detective Inspector Loader noted that extensive CCTV footage was pivotal in securing the convictions. The investigation was carried out by the force’s Major Investigation Team.
Gill was jailed on Wednesday, June 10, while Rarity was sentenced on Tuesday. The driving bans run alongside their prison terms.
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