The funeral of a “happy, loving” father of six killed in a multi-car crash has taken place attended by hundreds of mourners.
Taxi driver Imtiaz Mohammed was laid to rest after a service at Birmingham’s Central Mosque on Friday.
The mosque, which is the city’s largest, is just a few hundred yards from the scene of the deadly collision which claimed his life and those of five others, in the early hours of Sunday.
The 33-year-old was at the wheel of his cab when it was caught up in a collision with an Audi S3 on Lee Bank Middleway.
His two passengers, mother-of-two and sign language interpreter Lucy Davis, 43, and her partner Lee Jenkins, a 42-year-old clinical scientist at Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital, also died.
Hundreads of mourners attended the service at Birmingham Central Mosque for the funeral of Imtiaz Mohammed (Aaron Chown/PA)
Three men in the Audi, Tauqeer Hussain, 26, Mohammed Fahsha, 30, and 25-year-old Kasar Jehangir, all died at the scene, while a fourth is recovering in hospital.
His family paid tribute to him after his death, with younger brother Noorshad Mohammed describing him as a “happy, loving and friendly guy”, who was “always smiling”.
His brother had only rung his wife moments before the crash, telling her he would be home for supper.
Flowers from taxi driver Imtiaz Mohammed’s colleagues at Castle Cars ( Aaron Chown/PA)
Father Ikhtiar Mohammed, 65, recalled how his “heart sank” as police knocked on his door at 5am on Sunday.
After the funeral and burial, chairman of the mosque Muhammad Afzal said: “It was a very peaceful and sobering service.
“Hundreds of people attended and we prayed both for the assembly and for Imtiaz, may he rest in peace.”
He added: “People are very upset because in Birmingham, this was the worst road accident we’ve had for many years.
“A lot of people are asking for some review of the speed limits and what safety measures can be put in place on the road, so that this does not happen again.”