THE father of a student who died after a lorry careered into his taxi has slammed the driver's sentence as "a mockery of justice".

Business student Anton Dementyev, 19, was with three friends on their way to celebrate their university exams finishing when Andrew Wilson's articulated lorry hit their taxi in Glasgow.

Wilson, 55, went through a red light on Argyle Street at the junction after the slip road of the M8 motorway and collided with the Skoda.

Russian teenager Mr Dementyev was taken to hospital with a severe head and neck injury but tragically died the following day.

Taxi driver William Tombe and students Juan Doval, from Madrid, Camillo Herrara from Columbia and Daulet Abalov, from Kazakhstan, were also injured.

Wilson, from Ripon, North Yorkshire, pled guilty at Glasgow Sheriff Court to causing Mr Dementyev's death by careless driving, on May 8, 2013 and causing severe injury and permanent disfigurement to the other passengers.

Sheriff Kenneth Mitchell handed him a community payback order with the conditions he must carry out 240 hours of unpaid work and he will be disqualified from driving for 19 months.

Passing sentence he told Wilson: "Anton Dementyev was a much loved and popular young man, who had the prospect of a happy and successful future ahead of him.

"He had set out to achieve his goals to be a success for his family and his girlfriend. He made them proud. They will continue to mourn but they will never forget."

Speaking about the three surviving friends of Mr Dementyev he said: "The life of each of these young men has been detrimentally affected with far reaching adverse consequences for each of them and their families."

The sheriff added: "Whilst I accept that your speed was not a contributing factor, I am not prepared to ignore it in determining whether your inattention was momentary.

"Your careless driving arose from inattention which was more than momentary."

Speaking outside court Vladimir Dementeyv, who travelled from Russia to be at the court hearing said: "It's a kind of mockery of justice.

"It's not justice. We lost our son, he was our life, we are suffering every day."

Mr Abolov expressed his unhappiness and said: "It's too light a sentence. It wasn't just a car accident, we lost Anton. I thought the sentence should be different."

Earlier on the day of the incident Wilson left Harrogate in Yorkshire with plumbing materials to start his journey to Glasgow.

Around 11pm on May 8, Mr Dementyev and his friends got a taxi from Dumbarton Road heading to Glasgow city centre.

Procurator fiscal depute John Bedford said: "All were en route to a nightclub in Queen Street, Glasgow to celebrate the conclusion of their exams."

Mr Abolov sat in the passenger seat in the front while the other three sat in the back with Mr Dementyev in the middle in the back.

None of the students in the back of the car were wearing seatbelts.

At around 11.20pm Wilson came off of the motorway and travelled through the junction towards the traffic lights on Argyle Street, travelling at 34mph in a 30mph zone.

At the same time the taxi made its way along Stobcross Street to the junction with Argyle Street.

Mr Bedford said: "The accused failed to comply with a red traffic light at the junction and struck the taxi on its near side and pushed it southwards.

"The accused's vehicle and the taxi then collided with the support pillar for the Kingston Bridge."

Both vehicles came to rest after moving over the carriageway.

When police arrived at the scene Wilson told them "I didn't see the second set of lights."

Those in the taxi had to be cut out using specialist equipment and Mr Dementyev died in hospital the following day.

Defence counsel Simon Gilbride said Wilson, who had held an HGV licence for more than 30 years, offered condolences to all those involved and particularly Mr Dementyev's family.