Footballer Lucas Akins has been given a prison sentence at Leeds Crown Court for causing the death of a cyclist in Huddersfield due to careless or inconsiderate driving. The sentence relates to an incident in March 2022, in which cyclist Adrian Daniel, 33, died 10 days after being hit by Akins' Mercedes.

Akins has been sentenced to 14 months in prison following a hearing. He will serve half the sentence in custody before being released on licence and has been handed a one-year driving ban.

"It is clear to me that you are someone who is highly unlikely to trouble the courts again," Judge Alex Menary told the footballer, 36. "There is strong personal mitigation here. However, it seems that the appropriate punishment can only be achieved by immediate custody."

Akins pleaded guilty on 4th March. He has been on the books of Mansfield Town this season and has played several times for the League One side in the weeks since.

The 36-year-old has made more than 600 career appearances in England and Scotland, including two seasons in the EFL Championship with Burton Albion – from whom he joined Mansfield in 2021. He also has seven senior international caps for Grenada, most recently starting in a defeat against Russia in March.

“Adrian Daniel was riding his bicycle and travelling downhill on Huddersfield Road, heading towards the same junction," said Carmel Pearson KC, prosecuting. "He was wearing a headcam that recorded his journey, and the footage shows him in good condition. Crossland Factory Lane forms a T-junction, with Huddersfield Road at a give-way junction.

"The defendant, although driving slowly, pulled out at the give-way junction and struck Adrian Daniel. It was too late for Adrian Daniel to brake, and he suffered a catastrophic head injury."