THE FAMILY of a popular boxing coach killed in a fatal hit-and-run near Hook expressed their anguish in court as the driver of the car that hit him was sent to prison for four years.

On Thursday, April 1, Winchester Crown Court heard how Luke John, 26, ‘mowed down’ 53-year-old motorcyclist Tenny Turner on Reading Road in September 2019, before fleeing the scene.

Encouraged by the passengers in the car, John was driving nearly twice the legal speed limit, and did not stop after knocking Mr Turner from his bike, handing himself over to the police the next morning.

An ambulance was called by a passerby, but sadly Tenny Turner died in hospital the following day.

Speaking in court, the father-of-three’s daughters, Elaine and Nicola, described their father as their “idol”.

“My dad was the heart and sole of our family. His face would light up a room,” said Elaine.

“He was the kind of man to help anyone. My dad put so much of his life into helping others.

“He was the kindest, funniest, most caring man that I could ever know.

“My kids miss him so much, playing in the garden and their shared love of motorbikes. I will take the devastation on their faces when I told them to my grave.”

Elaine added that she was ‘stunned’ by the actions of Luke John and his friends.

“It stuns me that the three people in the car left him no different than an animal on the side of the road, in a ditch to die,” she said.

“I struggle to put into words how this has made me feel. I don’t think there is a word to describe it. From the result of those three people that night, our lives will never be the same again.

Addressing John, she simply said: “Your actions are irreversible, and you have to live with that.”

Tenny Turner ran a boxing academy aimed at inspiring young people into the sport and was well known and loved in the boxing community.

Nicole added: “Being a single mother, my dad was a father figure from the moment my son was born. My son worshipped my dad.

“Thousands of friends and family lost a great amount of light in their lives. I lost my loving dad and the best role model a mother could wish for.”

Nicole also spoke of feeling angry and confused at the decision of the group not to stop the vehicle.

“Accidents happen every day, but it is the actions afterwards that count,” she said.

“There are no words to describe how it has affected me and my son. You really can’t imagine how devastating it was to find out that there were three in that vehicle that night and that each one of the three chose not to give my dad a chance of survival.

“My conscience would not have let me leave the scene of the accident. I would have been at the casualty's side, doing all I could in my power.

“No punishment could begin to make this wrong right or bring my dad home where he should be.”

Paying tribute to her dad, she added: “I have been robbed of a loving father. The feeling chokes me every time in my mum and dad’s house when I am looking at an empty seat on the sofa he would call his seat. It is a continuous nightmare we can never wake up from. We lost the heart of our family, he was our king.”

Statements were also read from other members of the Turner family, including Tenny’s wife of 32 years, Elaine.

“I loved him from the moment I met him,” she wrote.

“I’ve found it hard to sleep since he is gone. The boys in the car that killed my Tenny didn’t even stop and try to help him.

“My life is now ruined without Tenny.”