Driver in court after death crash caught on video

Petelo Fa'aeteete was killed - leaving wife Aida, with grandson Peter, and children (from left) Fa'asao, Karen and James. Photo / Richard Robinson

A 41-year-old man will appear in court next week charged with aggravated careless driving causing the death of a man who was driving his wife, pregnant daughter and baby grandson home from a family dinner.

Petelo Fa'aeteete, 52, had taken his family out for a meal on June 30 and was driving home on Auckland's Southern Motorway when a car and his van collided.

The van rolled three times before landing on the driver's side. Mr Fa'aeteete died moments later.

The accused, a company director, will appear in Auckland District Court on Monday.

He is facing one charge of aggravated careless driving causing Mr Fa'aeteete's death.

The charge comes after a lengthy police investigation into the crash.

It is understood police were given a video of the accident by a couple driving behind the defendant and Mr Fa'aeteete. The footage was taken on a camera attached to their dashboard.

Police refused to comment on the tape but a source said it showed very clearly what had happened.

Mr Fa'aeteete's wife Aida was in the front passenger seat at the time of the crash. The pair were holding hands, as they often did while driving.

The couple's daughter Karen, who was three months pregnant at the time, was in the back seat with her 6-month-old son Peter - named after his grandfather.

Karen Fa'aeteete was adjusting Peter's car-seat and was about to rebuckle his seatbelt when the crash happened.

On impact, he flew from the vehicle and landed about 5m away atop a pizza box on the busy motorway, but miraculously escaped injury.

The van landed on the driver's side, leaving Mrs Fa'aeteete trapped in her seat above her husband.

"I could see his hand moving while I was hanging there ... I said, 'Hang in there, Petelo, help will come. You can't leave me'," she said.

Mr Fa'aeteete's family said police told them that it appeared a driver in the far left lane of the motorway was speeding and lost control on a bend.

That car ploughed into another vehicle which then smashed into Mr Fa'aeteete's van.