Bournemouth footballer Jordon Ibe fined over Bentley crash Published duration 3 March

image copyright Tess De La Mare image caption Jordon Ibe previously denied failing to stop at the scene of an accident

A Premier League footballer who crashed his Bentley into a coffee shop has been fined £7,500 and banned from driving for 16 months.

Bournemouth midfielder Jordon Ibe, 24, smashed his luxury car into The Pantry on Plaistow Lane in Bromley, London, on 30 July before fleeing the scene.

Ibe had admitted careless driving and in February was found guilty of failing to stop after an accident.

He was also given a 12-month community order at Bromley Magistrates' Court.

Ibe was ordered to pay £500 in compensation to those affected by the crash, as well as a £181 surcharge and £775 in costs.

'Looked like robbery'

The court previously heard the vehicle hit the premises and a parked Mercedes car at about 04:50 BST.

Part of Ibe's white Bentley Bentayga 4x4 was left behind in the rubble of the shop front when he drove away, the court was told.

Prosecutor Bina Morjaria said the damage to the shop was so extensive it had to shut for six weeks and the owners feared it would go out of business.

A statement read out on behalf of shopkeeper Sarah Dixon, a mother-of-three, said she had been "shocked" by the damage.

"I thought we had been robbed," she added. "I was devastated."

"I'm dismayed that someone who is as high profile as he is has not even tendered an apology to us," she added.

image copyright Google image caption The damaged shop front had to be removed from its foundations

Ibe's defence said he had stopped at the scene of the crash for "a period of time" and returned to the coffee shop that afternoon to find it closed.

District judge Catherine Moore said Ibe had been driving too quickly and "became distracted".

He also "did not stop at the scene for long enough", she said.

'Ignorant of duties'

Philip Lock, owner of the damaged Mercedes, said he had to pay more than £2,800 to have it repaired.

The court also heard that Ibe already had 11 penalty points on his driving licence.

Ibe's lawyer, Frank Rogers, told the court his client had spent much of his life "cocooned in the artificial world of football". This had left him "not well-educated" and "ignorant of his duties", he said.

Mr Rogers said Ibe's contract with Bournemouth is set to expire in the summer and his career had not become "what everybody might have expected" when he signed for Liverpool on his 16th birthday.

He also said Ibe was the victim of a robbery in 2016 where "armed criminals" crashed into his vehicle and "threatened him with guns and a machete" leaving him "fearing for his safety".

In a statement, Ibe said he accepted "full responsibility" for his actions and "lack of judgement".

He "apologised unreservedly" to Ms Dixon and Mr Lock, his team, fans of the club and his family.

"I realise I have let them all down, this is not the example I want to set for others," he said.

Ibe signed for AFC Bournemouth from Liverpool in 2016 for a reported transfer fee of £15m.