PLEASE get in touch - That's the desperate plea by a mother to her son who has gone missing after he admitted causing the death of a council worker in a horrific road crash.

Andrew Ellis, 36, of Ensbury Avenue, Ensbury Park, Bournemouth, pleaded guilty last month at Southampton Crown Court to causing death by dangerous driving.

Ellis, was due to be sentenced August 12 but did not turn up for the hearing and has failed to keep an appointment with the probation service.

Mum Pauline, 62, told the Echo she has not seen her son since he pleaded guilty on July 15 when she assumed he was going away on holiday for a few days.

She urged him to get in touch with her and added that she feared he was contemplating suicide.

Tearful Pauline said: "I don't know where he is. I thought he was just going off for a few days' holiday.

"It was just after the last court appearance and he has not called me since. I've no idea what he can be doing and he's left his job as well.

"He was just numb really. He had the idea he was going to get 15 years in prison and he couldn't face that.

"He was so depressed he was thinking of suicide but he's not the type of person to disappear.

"I spoke to his solicitor since and they said they thought he knew he would get about five years.

"I just want to say that I hope he is well and that we all love him. I really want him to get in touch."

Victim Bob Murray, 66, died when a vegetable delivery truck smashed into the rear of his stationary vehicle on the A35 between Lyndhurst and Ashurst on October 1.

The retired firefighter, whose New Forest council job involved trimming verges, was at the wheel of his vehicle with its hazard lights on and its beacon flashing when the tragedy occurred at about 5.40am.

Victim Mr Murray was a talented woodcarver who took part in shows across the country.

He was also a member of Swan Green Cricket Club, Lyndhurst, and of Testwood Baptist Church, Totton.

He was employed by the district council in 2000, initially as a car park attendant and latterly as a litter collector.

A fellow council worker, who had just got out of the vehicle and was standing nearby at the time of the impact, suffered serious injuries.

Defence barrister Stuart Ellacott said he and the defendant's solicitors had had no contact with Ellis since July 15 - the day he pleaded guilty - adding: "In short, we simply don't know where he is."

Judge Christopher Leigh QC has now issued a bench warrant for Ellis' arrest.

Mrs Ellis described her son as a "sensitive person" who worked as a lorry driver and enjoyed photography in his spare time.

Ellis was the type to bottle things up and would not usually confide all his feelings to her, she said.

She added: "It's been a bit traumatic. It's just so frustrating when you read in the paper about other cases very similar where they just get let off. I don't think he'll cope very well in prison. It was just an accident. You don't go out intending to do anything like that."

First published: August 13