Moment driver, 69, calmly tells police how she killed RAF veteran on her way to Take That concert: 'She seems to have gone over the bridge at the side of the road... I can't account for what happened'

By JON BRADY, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER and TARYN KAUR PEDLER, FOREIGN NEWS REPORTER Published: 13:15, 22 April 2026 | Updated: 13:17, 22 April 2026 A driver who killed an RAF veteran with her car as she walked to a Take That concert cooly told police she 'can't account' for how the accident happened. Fiona Hodge, 69, mounted the kerb in her Citroen C1 and fatally struck 53-year-old Donna Crossman on a main road in Bristol in June 2024, narrowly missing Ms Crossman's friends. The force of the collision sent Ms Rossman, who had once managed Wales' national rugby and netball teams, over the railings of the busy dual carriageway on Brunel Way, crashing down onto a BMX pump track below.  She suffered catastrophic injuries and died just a few hours later surrounded by her family. In newly released video, Ms Hodge can be heard telling a police officer that she did not know why she lost her concentration. 'The road wasn't busy, I was driving within the speed limit, I was coming home from a day's walking in the Mendips and I was chatting to my friends... and I mounted the pavement and hit... a person,' she can be heard telling the officer. 'It was very quick, I didn't really see the person. Actually, she seems to have gone over the side of the bridge on the side of the road. 'I don't know why I lost my concentration or mounted the pavement. I can't account for what happened really. It's a very nasty accident.' The officer, who could be heard typing the statement on a laptop as she spoke, simply replies: 'OK'.  Fiona Hodge, 69, denied responsibility for the death of Donna Crossman, 53, who was hit by her Citroen C1 car in June 2024 as she walked to Bristol's Ashton Gate Stadium. Pictured: Hodge is seen arriving at Bristol Crown Court on April 13 Donna Crossman (pictured) died as a result of her 'catastrophic injuries', jurors at Bristol Crown Court were told Ms Crossman (on the right) previously managed Wales' national netball and rugby teams, and had a 20-year-plus career in the RAF Hodge has been found guilty of causing death by careless driving following the incident.  A jury at Bristol Crown Court heard that she had subsequently been diagnosed with epilepsy by neurologists and had suffered 'weird' episodes beforehand, but had never suffered a seizure. Witnesses to the crash told police that Hodge's red Citroen C1 had been 'swerving in and out' of a bus lane in the minutes before the crash. 'She had been indicating for quite a while and about 20 seconds before (the crash) I said, 'I'm going to get back because I don't know what she's up to',' one told a police officer in body-worn camera footage released by Avon and Somerset Police. Jurors deliberated for six hours before returning a guilty verdict. Hodge will be sentenced at a later date. The court heard Hodge tested negative for drink and drugs in the aftermath of the crash.  Adam Vaitilingam KC, prosecuting, said: 'She was asked if she thought she had a medical condition and she replied that she didn't, she was asked if she thought she had experienced a medical episode and she replied 'no', and she was asked if she lost consciousness and she replied 'no'.' Donna's father, Steve Price, previously described his daughter, who served for more than two decades in the RAF, as 'perfect' and 'adventurous'. She had been seconded to the Pentagon near Washington DC and Nato in Brussels during a highly successful career in defence before finding success in sport. He said: 'She was wonderful, so caring, so loving... I know everybody says that about their kids, but she really was. 'She had a good life, she put a lot in, but she had so much more to give. 'Her circle of friends is massive, and it's affecting everyone.' Eyewitnesses (seen here in footage issued by Avon and Somerset Police, which obscured their identities) said Hodge had been swerving in the minutes before the crash Fiona Hodge, seen here in a police issued mugshot taken after she had hit Ms Crossman with her car  Ian Bridge, defending, previously told the court it is 'likely that this collision happened because she (Hodge) was suffering from an undiagnosed condition called epilepsy'. Before the crash took place, Hodge had 'never had a seizure before,' Vaitilingam added. The court was told Hodge had suffered several 'weird' episodes linked to undiagnosed epilepsy before the crash. She told the jury she had 'no recollection' of the moments leading up to it. When giving her evidence, Hodge told the court: 'I do recall an incredible jolt… I was then in a sudden, extremely rapid sense of consequences... I was on the kerb... and in front of me were three women.' She then told friends in the car: 'I think I may have killed someone.' Following Ms Hodge's conviction, Noeli Poupard of Avon and Somerset Police's Serious Collision Investigation Team said: 'This was an incredibly tragic incident which resulted in the death of a much-loved daughter, wife and friend who was on her way out to enjoy her evening with her friends. 'It was the defence's case that Hodge had suffered an epileptic seizure at the time of the collision.  'However it appears the jury rejected this idea and felt her lack of care and attention is what caused Mrs Crossman's death. 'Mrs Crossman's family have endured a great deal of pain over the past 18 months and they have shown great strength and dignity throughout the investigation and trial.  'My hope is that this result give them some closure.' No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. 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