A motorist has been warned he must “pay the price” after a jury found his driving caused the deaths of two teenage passengers.

Former soldier Shaun Waters was “snaking or mucking about”, said a judge, when his car was in a head-on crash with a lorry on the A20 on February 28 last year.

Joseph Bunce, 17, and Daisy Washington, 14, were killed. Waters and Daisy’s school friend Elena Cowell, 15, were badly injured. His five-year-old stepdaughter escaped unhurt.

Waters, 22, of Magpie Hall Road, Chatham, denied two charges of causing death by dangerous driving, but was convicted of both by an 11-1 majority.

Maidstone Crown Court heard Waters had driven in his mother’s Ford Escort to a primary school in Lenham, to collect his stepdaughter.

He had split from his wife Sarah and moved in with Mr Bunce’s family.

After picking up the little girl, Miss Washington and Miss Cowell were given a lift.

The car was approaching Charing when the tragedy happened.

Diane Coffey, who was driving behind, later described the Escort “snaking” from left to right. She also noticed “fidgeting” in the car.

The court heard the car went onto the kerb, over a grass verge and then back onto the road and into the path of the oncoming lorry.

Judge James O’Mahony remanded Waters in custody for reports until August 15.

He told him: “I have no doubt you were guilty of not a momentary course of driving, which resulted in the death of those two young people, but a significant course of driving, including snaking or mucking about, whichever way you look at that which has been described.

“This is a very serious matter indeed. Those two lives were lost. Lives of others, including your stepdaughter, being at risk as well.”

The judge added: “It was a horrible accident and you were responsible.

“You have to pay the price. I am not going to play cat and mouse by indicating otherwise.”

Waters said he remembered turning the wheel extremely hard to the left to try to get the car back to the right side of the road, but unsuccessfully.

“I knew there was something there. I don’t remember the impact.

“The next thing I remember is waking up in the car. I got knocked unconscious by the impact.”

He said he heard on the radio that two of his passengers had died.

Waters said: “I am completely devastated knowing the families are ripped apart.