A BOY who was killed when the car he was driving hit a ditch and flipped over was found at the scene by his mother, an inquest has heard.
Jamie Doherty (14) died on in June 2018 when the Renault Clio he was driving crashed on a bog road near Moville in Co Donegal.
He had been driving a relative's car near to their home when he lost control.
He was the sole occupant of the vehicle.
The ambulance service attended, but the teenager was pronounced dead at the scene.
Images of the car showed that it has it turned over on its side.
The teenager, who was the eldest of three boys, had just finished his second year at Moville Community College.
His mother, Evelyn Doherty, told the inquest at Letterkenny Courthouse yesterday that Jamie had been at his grandmother's house while she brought her other two sons swimming.
She said that when she later went to collect him, she was told that her son had taken the car to his girlfriend's house.
Mrs Doherty told the inquest that she was not happy about this and sent him a message, but received no reply. She added that he was not permitted on public roads in the car, but was allowed to drive on the farm lane.
It emerged Jamie never arrived at his girlfriend's house and Mrs Doherty and other family members searched for him.
When Mrs Doherty turned off the main road at Tullyalley she saw a car which had flipped over. As she neared it, she saw her son's legs and feet and told the inquest she "knew he was gone".
"My best friend was dead under the car," she said.
"Jamie was our eldest son, the love of our lives, we could rely on him for anything and he would have grown up to be a fine young man."
Retired Garda Seamus Lyons said the road where the crash occurred was mainly a shortcut between two townlands.
A garda forensic examination concluded that the car hit a ditch and flipped. The condition of the road and driver error were major factors.
Coroner Dr Denis McCauley said it was a terrible accident and misadventure, as Jamie had taken a car he was not allowed to take.
The coroner said Jamie appeared to be a lovely character who had taken a chance, hoping to be back before his mother came to collect him.
