Masrob Ali died alongside three teenagers who were travelling in another vehicle
Amy Fenton Senior reporter
11:29, 12 Jan 2026Updated 14:14, 12 Jan 2026
Mosrab Ali pictured at his daughter’s graduation(Image: Submitted)
A taxi driver killed in a Bolton crash has been pictured for the first time as his family pay tribute to “the gentlest soul”.
Uber driver Masrob Ali from Blackburn had left his home for work on Saturday (January 10) at around 5.16pm. The 54-year-old was driving his Citroen C4 Picasso along Wigan Road in Bolton at 12.50am in the early hours of the following morning when he was hit head on by a red Seat Leon.
Masrob died at the scene. The three teenagers in the Seat, named locally as Mohammed Jibrael Mukhtar, Farhan Patel and Muhammad Danyaal Asghar Ali, also died. Two passengers who were in Masrob’s taxi at the time were taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries.
Masrob’s family said he had worked as a taxi driver for around 10 years. They had previously voiced their concerns about him driving late at night but he had told them not to worry.
His oldest child, 29-year-old Humayra, described her dad as “the gentlest soul”. Relatives and friends have been supporting the family since they received the devastating news.
“Nobody has a bad word to say against him, he was so kind and the best dad,” Humayra said.
“When they knocked on our door and told us what had happened I was just so confused. Dad was such a safe driver and even when we said we were worried something might happen he would say ‘don’t worry about me’.”
Masrob’s family say they were told he was killed instantly in the collision and wouldn’t have suffered any pain.
“The police have been wonderful,” Humayra added. “They said the mortuary is normally closed at weekends but they arranged for it to be opened so we could go and see dad and say goodbye.”
The collision is being investigated by Greater Manchester Police. Officers have already obtained CCTV of the crash which Humayra has also seen.
“It’s clear that my dad wasn’t at fault and didn’t do anything wrong,” she added.
Any witnesses who haven’t already come forward are being urged to contact police on 101.