A drunk driver who killed a highways worker on the M23 near Gatwick Airport has been named for the first time after admitting causing death by dangerous driving. Vilius Domarkas, 38, appeared at Hove Crown Court on Thursday, August 6, where he pleaded guilty to the charge. The fatal collision occurred in the early hours of July 8 on the southbound slip road at Junction 9, past Gatwick.
Crash details and immediate aftermath
The 65-year-old victim, a highways worker from Kent, had stopped inside a coned-off area of the slip road and had exited his Ford Transit Dropside when Domarkas’ Citroen Relay van veered into the coned lane and struck him. Police arrived to find Domarkas with “glazed and bloodshot eyes” and slurring his speech. A Sussex Police spokesperson added that he was “unsteady on his feet and fell over.”
Domarkas, previously from Croydon but most recently of no fixed address, provided an evidential blood sample four hours after the collision. The reading showed 221 microgrammes (ug) of alcohol per 100 millilitres (ml) of blood, nearly three times the legal limit of 80ug per 100ml.
Dashcam footage and police statement
Detective Constable Kelly Newton from the Serious Collision Investigation Unit said: “This is another tragic example of drink-driving which has had devastating consequences. Domarkas was in no fit state to drive that night, and his own vehicle’s dashcam footage showed him driving erratically prior to the fatal collision.”
DC Newton added: “He has caused the death of a highways worker and put the lives of all other road users at risk when he got behind the wheel. Our thoughts continue to be with the family of the highways worker who died. We await the sentencing on the 28 September.”
Legal proceedings and sentencing date
The southbound carriageway of the M23 at Junction 9 was closed following the incident. Domarkas was arrested at the scene and later charged. He has been remanded in custody and is scheduled to be sentenced at Hove Crown Court on September 28.
The case has renewed calls for tougher penalties for drink-driving, which remains a leading cause of fatal road collisions in the UK. According to the Department for Transport, 260 people were killed in drink-drive accidents in 2024, the latest year for which data is available.
