Following a two-year international manhunt and a landmark UK-Latvia extradition agreement, 23-year-old Aleksanders Dolars has been sentenced to nine years and four months in prison for the 75mph Coventry crash that killed schoolboy Keaton Slater.
More than two years after 12-year-old schoolboy Keaton Slater was fatally struck while walking home from school in Coventry, the hit-and-run driver who fled the United Kingdom to evade justice has finally been sentenced behind bars.
On Friday, November 13, 2026, Aleksanders Dolars (also referred to in court records as Dolars Aleksanders), 23, was sentenced at Warwick Crown Court to nine years and four months in prison after previously pleading guilty to causing death by dangerous driving. Judge Kristina Montgomery KC also imposed a sweeping driving disqualification—banning Dolars from the roads for 16 years and one month (effective as a 10-year ban following his release from custody) and ordering him to serve at least two-thirds of his custodial term before becoming eligible for release on licence.
The sentencing marks the culmination of a relentless two-year investigation by West Midlands Police, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), Europol, and Latvian law enforcement—a campaign sustained by the unwavering determination of Keaton’s parents, Louise and Josh Slater, who refused to let their son’s case disappear across international borders.
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The Fatal Coventry Hit-and-Run on Radford Road
The tragedy unfolded shortly after 4:30 p.m. on June 14, 2024, as 12-year-old Keaton Slater walked home from Cardinal Newman Catholic School alongside friends in the Radford area of Coventry.
According to evidence presented before Warwick Crown Court, Dolars was behind the wheel of a black BMW travelling along Radford Road—a busy residential and commercial thoroughfare lined with homes and shops and governed by a strict 30mph speed limit. Collision investigators determined that Dolars was driving at between 70mph and 75mph—more than double the legal limit—when Keaton attempted to cross the road.
Keaton tried to run to safety as the vehicle hurtled toward him, but the BMW’s grossly excessive speed made a collision unavoidable. The impact projected the 12-year-old into two parked vehicles, inflicting catastrophic, fatal injuries that Judge Montgomery noted likely killed him instantly. Keaton was pronounced dead at the scene at 4:41 p.m.
Rather than stopping to render aid or call emergency services, Dolars accelerated away from the scene. A passenger inside the vehicle later recalled hearing an occupant shout “go, go, go” immediately after the strike. Roughly 20 minutes later, the undamaged BMW—which forensic examiners confirmed had no mechanical defects—was found abandoned on Frederick Road, more than seven miles away from the crash site.
Two-Year International Manhunt and Landmark UK-Latvia Extradition
Within hours of the collision, West Midlands Police’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit identified Aleksanders Dolars as the prime suspect and launched an urgent public appeal. However, before officers could apprehend him, Dolars fled the United Kingdom and returned to his native Latvia.
For over two years, legal hurdles surrounding cross-border extradition delayed his return to British soil while Keaton’s family campaigned tirelessly for diplomatic and judicial intervention. The breakthrough arrived in July 2026, when updated extradition arrangements between the United Kingdom and Latvia enabled Latvian authorities to detain Dolars.
On August 5, 2026, Dolars was escorted onto a flight to London Gatwick Airport, transferred into West Midlands Police custody, and formally charged by the Crown Prosecution Service with causing death by dangerous driving. He entered a guilty plea at Warwick Crown Court in September 2026, setting the stage for Friday’s sentencing hearing.
Judge Condemns “Selfish and Dangerous Driving” as Parents Speak Out
Addressing Dolars directly in the dock—where the 23-year-old stood wearing a white shirt and black trousers—Judge Kristina Montgomery KC delivered a scathing assessment of both his reckless driving and his flight from accountability.
“You drove more than twice the speed limit on a road lined with homes and shops. You put your own impatience ahead of the safety of everyone around you. Keaton was entitled to walk home safely,” Judge Montgomery told the court. “You must have known you had struck a pedestrian and you must have realised he would be gravely injured, but you did not stop or even slow down, you sped away and abandoned your car… Your fear of imprisonment did not justify leaving Keaton behind. You chose to protect yourself.”
During the hearing, Keaton’s mother, Louise Slater, read an emotional victim impact statement describing how her son had asked for the day off school on the morning of his death and how the family’s world shattered when he never came home.
“Keaton was our world. He was funny, caring, loving and full of life. He had the biggest smile and a heart full of kindness,” Mrs. Slater told the court. “Knowing that the person responsible did not stop to help our son is something we will never understand. Keaton was left behind.”
Speaking outside Warwick Crown Court following the ruling, Keaton’s parents expressed relief that Dolars can no longer endanger other families on the road, though they voiced frustration that under UK sentencing guidelines—where Dolars will serve two-thirds of his nine-year, four-month sentence in custody—he could be released in just over six years.
“It’s good to know he isn’t going to be able to be on the roads and do this to another family, but six years—I think he should have got longer because my baby only had 12 years on this planet,” Mrs. Slater said. Keaton’s father, Josh Slater, added: “For what he has done to the whole family, he has destroyed all of us. There are no words. He is a coward. He is only saying sorry now because he is behind bars.”
The Slater family’s grief echoes the raw parental devastation documented in our previous report, Heartbreak on Camera: The Devastating Moment a Father Learns His 13-Year-Old Was Killed by a Drunk Driver, which highlighted how a single reckless decision behind the wheel can shatter an entire household in seconds—leaving parents to grapple with “an unimaginable loss that no prison sentence can ever truly repair.”
Why the Keaton Slater Case Marks a Turning Point for Cross-Border Road Justice
Beyond the immediate grief of the Coventry community, the prosecution of Aleksanders Dolars highlights two critical realities in modern UK criminal justice:
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Closing International Loopholes for Fugitive Drivers: Historically, suspects who fled abroad immediately after fatal collisions could tie up extradition requests for years. The coordinated operation between West Midlands Police, the CPS Extradition Unit, the National Crime Agency, Europol, and Latvian authorities demonstrates that international borders no longer guarantee immunity for dangerous drivers.
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Stricter Sentencing Standards for Extreme Speeding: Under the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, maximum penalties for causing death by dangerous driving in England and Wales were raised from 14 years to life imprisonment, allowing judges to impose longer custodial sentences and extended driving bans when extreme speed is combined with fleeing the scene.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Who was Keaton Slater and what happened to him?
Keaton Slater was a 12-year-old schoolboy from Coventry, England. On June 14, 2024, while walking home from school on Radford Road, he was struck and killed in a hit-and-run collision by a speeding black BMW travelling at over 70mph in a 30mph zone.
How long was Aleksanders Dolars sentenced to prison?
On November 13, 2026, Warwick Crown Court sentenced 23-year-old Aleksanders Dolars to nine years and four months in prison after he pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving. He must serve at least two-thirds of his sentence in custody before becoming eligible for release on licence, and he received a 16-year, one-month driving ban (10 years post-release).
Why did it take over two years to bring Aleksanders Dolars to justice?
Immediately after abandoning his BMW in Coventry on June 14, 2024, Dolars fled the UK to Latvia. Legal and diplomatic extradition barriers delayed his arrest until July 2026, when a new extradition agreement between the UK and Latvia allowed Latvian police to detain him and extradite him to Gatwick Airport on August 5, 2026.
What speed was Aleksanders Dolars driving when he hit Keaton Slater?
Forensic collision investigators established that Dolars was driving between 70mph and 75mph along Radford Road in Coventry—more than double the posted 30mph residential speed limit.
Did Aleksanders Dolars plead guilty?
Yes. Following his extradition from Latvia in August 2026, Dolars pleaded guilty to one count of causing death by dangerous driving at Warwick Crown Court in September 2026.
