A man whose Sprinter van killed two people after ploughing into a parked car was not driving dangerously, a jury has decided.

Silvananthan Mathivathanan, 44, had always admitted his careless driving was responsible for the deaths of Valentino Coleman and his daughter Olivia.

Now, after a trial at Canterbury Crown Court, he has been acquitted of two charges of causing their deaths by dangerous driving.

As the verdicts were announced on Monday, members of the victims’ family wept and comforted each other.

Hair salon boss Mr Coleman – known to friends as Tino – died together with 21-year-old Olivia when Mathivathanan’s Mercedes struck their parked car, “catapulting” it into the victims.

The horror crash happened after Mr Coleman’s daughter Grace, who works at Kent and Canterbury Hospital, had pulled over after suffering a flat tyre on the A299 Hengist Way.

Grace had been travelling home in her Renault Clio on October 23 last year.

But when she was close to Manston Airport she pulled over to the side after discovering her car’s nearside tyre had deflated.

She called her father for assistance and he arrived with her sister, Olivia, and parked his Toyota behind Grace’s car on the side of the road.

James Young then arrived in his recovery vehicle and put the flashing lights on, stopping a couple of car lengths ahead of the stationary vehicles.

Mr Young advised Mr Coleman and Olivia to get out of their Toyota Aygo and climb the nearby bank – and then called for back-up from his boss.

It was then that Mr Mathivathanan was driving home from Canterbury to his Broadstairs home and failed to see hazard lights in time to avoid the collision.

Mr Mathivathanan, who did not give evidence in his defence during the trial, had told police officers how he saw the recovery vehicle’s flashing lights but thought it was off the carriageway.

He said in his interview: “I thought they’re doing some repair works or something.

“I thought the recovery vehicle was off the street.

“All of a sudden it’s been hit really badly. I realised that there’s a car.

“I tried to swerve the steering to the right-hand side.”

He told police he knew he had struck something, but only only realised it had been Mr Coleman’s car after he pulled up following the accident.

The store boss told police: “I’m really sorry for the (victims’) family. I help so many people out in my life. I’m really devastated. I’m really, really, really sorry for this.

“I don’t know what to say. I’m really sorry. I’ve done a really, really bad thing, really bad.”

After the verdict, Judge James O’Mahony adjourned sentence until the New Year and granted bail to Mr Mathivathanan, 44, from Grange Road, Broadstairs, but warned him he faces a jail sentence when he returns.

He was also given an interim driving ban.

The judge told the family of the victims: “I really understand that it has been a difficult experience for you all.”