Mark Ross faces sentencing after being found guilty of murdering Amazon driver Claudiu-Carol Kondor, who was fatally dragged during a van theft.

A career criminal has been convicted of murder after an Amazon delivery driver was dragged to his death while trying to stop his van from being stolen in Leeds.

Mark Ross, a habitual offender, snatched the vehicle while Claudiu-Carol Kondor, 42, was delivering parcels in Armley. As Kondor clung to the passenger door, Ross sped through residential streets at 60mph, swerved violently, and deliberately crashed into parked cars to shake him off.

Kondor, a Romanian worker from Sheffield, suffered fatal head and chest injuries when Ross rammed a stationary Mini, sending him crashing to the ground. The thief then fled the scene, later claiming he didn’t know Kondor was hanging on.

Ross admitted manslaughter but denied murder, insisting he had only stolen the van to buy cannabis. However, a Leeds Crown Court jury found him guilty of murder, with prosecutors describing his “complete disregard” for human life.

Kondor’s employer, SP Transport Group, called him “more than just a colleague – he was a friend”, while his grieving family listened to the verdict via video link. Ross will be sentenced on Friday.