A driver has been found guilty of causing the death of his friend by dangerous driving when he drove into the path of an oncoming lorry.

Sajid Ali, 30, pulled a borrowed VW Touran in front of an oncoming truck that crashed into it on the A5 at Markyate.

On Monday, Ali from St Albans Road, Watford, was found guilty at St Albans Crown Court of causing the death of his friend by dangerous driving.

He had earlier pleaded guilty to a charge of causing the death of Mr Ahmed by careless driving, but a trial went ahead, with the prosecution claiming he was guilty of the more serious offence.

Chaudhry Ahmed, who was sitting behind the front seat passenger, was thrown from the vehicle by the impact and was killed at around 9pm on the night of Friday, December 12 2014.

In the witness box Mr Ali said he was born in Pakistan and came to this country eight and a half years ago.

He was working part time in the Day One grocery shop and off licence in Watford at the time of the crash.

Asked by his barrister Sam Parham to describe Mr Ahmed, he said: "He was a friendly person. I had known him for a year. He came to the shop. We were really good friends.

"I feel so bad because of the accident. My friend passed away. There is a hole in my life. He died because of my careless driving.

"I wish I could move back time to save his life."

The Touran, driven by the defendant and with three passengers, was going north to a cash and carry with the Daf Recovery truck heading south from Markyate to attend a call on the M1 when the crash happened.

The jury heard that as the two vehicles approached each other and just yards apart, Mr Ali made a sudden right turn towards the entrance of the Esso Petrol Station forecourt.

Mr Ali, who denied he had been using a mobile phone, told the jury he pulled over to buy soft drinks from the petrol station.

He said: "I indicated to go right. I went into the middle turning lane. I saw lights from the front of me. I thought I had enough time to turn right.

"I heard a bang and the airbag hit my face and I went unconscious."

After the crash he said he went to where Mr Ahmed was lying. "A lady was there praying. She said don't see him," he said.

Earlier prosecutor Alan Blake said the manoeuvre took the Touran directly into the path of the truck and the driver was unable to avoid the subsequent collision.

The court was told the truck was subject to a 40 miles per hour speed limit and investigators had concluded it may have been travelling between 43 and 49 miles per hour.

But, said the prosecutor, it wouldn't have made any difference to the outcome.

Mr Blake said it was the prosecution's case that there could only be two explanations for the defendant's driving that night.

Either he had been distracted and hadn't been observing the road ahead and the truck bearing down on him as he made the right turn, or he did see it and took a chance thinking he could turn into the garage.

Mr Blake said the manoeuvre he performed in turning right was highly dangerous and had crossed the road when it was not safe to do so.

The jury was told a witness who got to the crashed car moments after the collision saw a phone which was lit up in the hand of the driver who was still behind the wheel.

A subsequent examination of the phone revealed that it was not being used at the time of the crash but, said the prosecutor, if the witness was right about the phone it could explain the inattention of the driver or it had hampered the driver's ability to perform the right hand turn.

Ali will be sentenced on February 3.