Death-crash expat Luke Armstrong's parents spoke of their pain as they prepared to fly home to England at the weekend — leaving their son in a Westgate cell.

Meanwhile, the woman he almost killed when his truck slammed into her car said: "I can forgive him but I can never forget."

The 25-year-old Brit was convicted on Friday over April's fireball crash that left Winston (Yogi) Burrows dead and two people injured. He was at the wheel of a heavy truck — which he wasn't licensed to drive — when it veered to the wrong side of the road and hit the car the victims were travelling in. He was found guilty of dangerous driving through the unanimous verdict of a jury and jailed for 15 months.

In an exclusive interview with The Royal Gazette on Saturday, his father David Armstrong said: "We feel gutted. Devastated. As far as we're concerned, he did not cause what happened. We have to accept the jury's verdict but we don't agree with it."

Mr. Armstrong and his wife Teresa flew to Bermuda from their home in Lincolnshire to support their son through his three-day trial.

They have visited him in prison since the verdict and say he is doing "OK". They were due to fly home on Saturday evening, but Mr. Armstrong said: "The family will be flying out at regular intervals to see him."

The court case was based on circumstantial evidence as the two surviving passengers from the car — Evelyn Rewan and Honest Masawi — were knocked unconscious and cannot remember what happened.

Mr. Armstrong said: "There was far too much circumstantial evidence for it to be cut and dried and we feel that there was some politics in these charges being brought because Luke was a guest worker."

Police collision investigators said gouge marks and debris on the road indicated the truck went onto the wrong side of the road and hit the car. Armstrong was arrested several hours later at his home address and admitted drinking several beers before the crash.

The jury also heard evidence that car driver Mr. Burrows was more than twice the legal drink-drive limit and had taken cocaine before the smash on South Road, Warwick, in the early hours of April 5.

He also had a paralysed left hand from a previous road accident 12 years earlier.

Defence lawyer Saul Froomkin QC questioned the extent of Armstrong's responsibility for the collision, pointing to Mr. Burrows' condition at the time.

He also took issue with the findings of the scene examiners. Armstrong exercised his right not to give evidence in his own defence.

His father now expects an appeal will be launched, with his wife Teresa vowing: "We'll do whatever we can to clear his name and get him out."

Armstrong was employed by Arctic Air Conditioning on a work permit but lost his job as a result of the charges. He also lost his home and was accommodated by a local family in the months he spent waiting for the trial.

His parents said they were grateful for the kindness they have received from people here both before and since the verdict.

Meanwhile, Ms Rewan, 30, who suffered life-threatening injuries in the crash, said: "Justice has been served. And I can forgive, but I can never forget."

Doctors told mother-of-three Ms Rewan she was lucky to survive the broken neck she sustained in the smash.

She also suffered a broken knee and toe and severe lacerations to her face that have left her with permanent scars.

She told this newspaper: "It's upsetting. It still hurts. But I can't walk around with a heavy load on my heart.

"He's been found guilty and justice has been served. I have to move on and find a better life for me and my children."

Her family friend Mr. Burrows was driving her and Mr. Masawi home that night in her car, after offering to do so because she'd too much to drink.

Mr. Masawi, 46, escaped from the car after the smash and dragged her from the wreckage. However, he was unable to rescue Mr. Burrows before the car exploded into a fireball.

Ms Rewan had surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital after the crash and a large metal halo was screwed into her skull for three months to allow the broken bone in her neck to reform.

She also has a permanent pin in her knee and continues to suffer pain from her injuries, although she has returned to work as a part-time receptionist at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.

"They didn't tell me what happened for three months, until I was getting ready to come home," she revealed. "I didn't know Yogi was dead. I didn't know the car caught on fire.

"I thought everybody was OK. It was very brave of Honest to rescue me and I'm very thankful that he was able to get out himself.

"Winston's family and Honest's family are never going to be the same. It's been hard for my family and my children. When I wake up in the morning I see my scars. It was very hard giving evidence in the trial.

"I was emotional but I just kept on keeping on and trusting in God. I feel that (prosecutor) Cindy Clarke did a very good job because she did get the verdict that everybody wanted."