A driver who was under the influence of cannabis when he knocked down and killed an elderly pedestrian has been jailed for two years.

After the accident police went to Damian Demczuk’s car and were met by an “overpowering smell” of the drug, Maidstone Crown Court was told.

The 27-year-old Polish-born father was not only driving while unfit through drugs, he had no insurance and his Audi Quattro A6 car was not roadworthy.

Great-grandmother Sifa Rifat, 88, was crossing the road near her sheltered home in Northfleet when she was hit.

Demczuk, who admitted causing death by careless driving when unfit through drugs and by uninsured driving, claimed he had been momentarily distracted when he turned to take a cigarette from a backseat passenger.

He was banned from driving for 11 years and will have to take an extended test before being allowed back on the road.

The tragedy happened as he was driving along the 40mph limit London Road at about 11.50am on May 30 this year.

Prosecutor Tom Dunn said the view along the straight stretch of road was excellent and it was a bright, dry and clear day.

Mother-of-six Mrs Rifat, who was originally from north Cyprus, was crossing the road near her home at Cleveland House.

Witnesses described her as elderly, frail and walking slowly with the aid of a stick, appearing not to be in a rush.

She was close to the centre of the road when she was struck. She was rendered unconscious by serious head and chest injuries.

She suffered a cardiac arrest and was declared dead by an air ambulance doctor at 1.19pm.

Demczuk, of Quarry Hill, Grays, Essex, was distressed when told Mrs Rifat had died. “He put his head in his hands and wept,” said Mr Dunn.

Tests revealed cannabis in his blood at a low level - 2.5 micrograms per litre of blood. Symptoms of using the drug included drowsiness and distortion in perception of space and time.

Mr Dunn said Demczuk’s insurance had lapsed in March. Because of the condition of the car, it should not have been on the road, but the defects did not contribute to the accident.

Demczuk, a tipper lorry driver for a removals company, at first claimed he hit the victim after a car ahead of him swerved to avoid her, but CCTV footage showed the other vehicle did not exist.

“An officer reports entering the vehicle and there was an overpowering smell of cannabis,” said Mr Dunn.

He said he had smoked cannabis the night before but was not under the influence of it when he drove that morning.

Mrs Rifat had 13 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren. One of her sons, Hussein, sat in court at the sentencing hearing.