The man who drove his vehicle into crowds celebrating Liverpool’s 2024/25 Premier League title victory has been sentenced to more than 21 years in prison for causing scenes described in court as “horror and devastation”.

Paul Doyle, 54, broke down in tears in the dock as victim impact statements were read out at Liverpool Crown Court, detailing the lasting physical and psychological trauma suffered by those caught up in the incident on 26 May.

Passing sentence, Judge Andrew Menary said what should have been a day of shared joy had instead left a “lasting legacy of fear, injury and loss”.

“Your actions caused horror and devastation on a scale not previously encountered by this court,” he told Doyle.

Dashcam footage shown to the court captured Doyle becoming increasingly agitated as he drove through the crowd, shouting abuse and deliberately steering his vehicle into pedestrians.

Judge Menary said the consequences of the attack extended far beyond those formally named in the indictment, affecting parents, children, police officers, tourists and passers-by who initially feared they were witnessing a terrorist attack.

He added that Doyle’s “complete disregard for human life defies ordinary understanding”.

Prosecutor Paul Greaney KC told the court that Doyle had used his car as a weapon, injuring 134 people in less than 10 minutes.

“He lost his temper in his determination to get to where he wanted to go,” Mr Greaney said. “In a rage, he drove into the crowd intending to cause serious harm.”

Doyle pleaded guilty last month to 31 offences, including grievous bodily harm with intent, wounding with intent, affray and dangerous driving. He had initially denied the charges but changed his plea on the second day of his trial in November, admitting all counts relating to 29 victims aged between six months and 77 years.

Among those injured was a six-month-old baby who was thrown from a pram but, remarkably, escaped unharmed. Although no one was killed, 50 people required hospital treatment.

The court heard Doyle had left his home in West Derby driving a grey Ford Galaxy Titanium, claiming he intended to collect a friend from Liverpool city centre.

Over a seven-minute period, he drove indiscriminately into pedestrians amid screams of terror, at one stage reversing into people and colliding with an ambulance. The vehicle eventually came to a stop after several victims, including children, became trapped underneath it.

In the final moments, a member of the public jumped into the car and managed to shift the gear into park, bringing the incident to an end.

Detective Chief Inspector John Fitzgerald of Merseyside Police described the footage as the most distressing he had seen in more than 20 years of service.

“It is difficult to comprehend how someone could drive over people in a fit of rage simply to get to where they wanted to go,” he said.

Police later confirmed the incident was not terrorism, but an extreme case of road rage.