A U-turn by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has landed a 21-year-old in court accused of causing the death of a car enthusiast from Margate.

William Cliff had been released without charge seven months after his arrest following a crash in which 23-year-old Adrian Stroud was killed in Herne Bay.

But after a review of the case, the CPS decided to prosecute and charged Cliff with causing death by dangerous driving.

The 21-year-old, of Stuppington Cottages, Doddington, appeared at Canterbury Crown Court and denied the offence.

He also pleaded not guilty to a second charge of causing serious injury to Matthew Garner by driving dangerously.

The allegations centre around a crash on the Old Thanet Way at 12.30am on April 19 last year.

Mr Stroud was driving a VW Golf involved in the collision at the junction with Eddington Lane. Emergency crews raced to the scene, but he was pronounced dead.

Firefighters used hydraulic cutting equipment to remove the roof of a Range Rover to free a male passenger – believed to be Mr Garner.

Cliff – who was said to be driving a Vauxhall Corsa – was later arrested.

A provisional date for his trial has been set for October 31.