Man Who Faked Death After Train Crash Is Sentenced

LONDON — A man who pretended to have died in the crash of two passenger trains in west London last year was granted a five-month suspended sentence Monday.

Karl Hackett, 37, saw the crash near Paddington Station as an opportunity to start a new life under an assumed identity, prosecutors said.

Thinking he had perished, Hackett’s family attended a memorial service at the crash site days after the two trains collided in October, killing 31 people, according to court testimony.

Magistrate Geoffrey Breen said he had “considerable hesitation” in suspending the sentence for two years, pending good behavior. But he said Hackett has “underlying psychiatric problems” that need treatment.

Breen ordered Hackett to pay $160 in court costs.

Prosecutor Alan Milford said Hackett twice phoned an emergency line set up by police, first pretending to be his boss and then posing as his own brother. Each time, he reported himself missing.

“At the bare minimum, 31 hours of police time was wasted,” Milford said.

Police also discovered that Hackett, who has previous convictions for indecent assault and a series of minor crimes, had been posing for 20 years as someone called Lee Simm.