A “career criminal” has been found guilty of murdering an Amazon delivery driver who was trying to stop his van from being stolen.

Claudiu-Carol Kondor, 42, was dragged along a street at high speeds as he clung to his vehicle to try to stop the theft on 20 August last year.

The thief, Mark Ross, had climbed into the van while Kondor was delivering Amazon parcels in the Armley area of Leeds.

Jurors at Leeds crown court heard that Ross hit speeds of almost 60mph on residential streets and swerved erratically from side to side before hitting two parked cars, in an effort to “get rid” of Kondor, who hung from the open passenger door.

The Romanian delivery driver died from head and chest injuries after Ross deliberately crashed into a stationary Mini to knock him from the vehicle.

Ross, who claimed he was unaware of Kondor hanging on to the van, had pleaded guilty to manslaughter but denied murder. He was found guilty of the more serious charge on Wednesday.

Witnesses described Kondor’s legs dragging on the ground as he clung to the inside of the open door, with one woman saying she heard him shouting: “Help.”

John Harrison KC, for the prosecution, told jurors: “After speeding and swerving failed to get rid of Mr Kondor, the defendant deliberately drove into a collision with two parked cars.”

He said Ross “deliberately” turned the steering wheel of the van towards a black car parked on the side of the road, and when that did not knock Kondor from the van, he “tried again”.

“The second collision was with a blue car, which caused damage to the van, to the parked car and most significantly, caused fatal head and chest injuries to Mr Kondor,” Harrison said.

The court heard that after driving away, Ross met up with some other people and the contents of the van were removed.

Harrison said Ross showed a “complete disregard and even contempt” for Kondor’s life.

He said the “career criminal” must have realised Kondor, who was wearing a hi-vis jacket, was there, but made the choice that the driver was “expendable”.

Ross told the court he had been a daily cannabis user since he was a child and had been out buying drugs and cigarette papers when he came across the van with no driver.

He said: “It wasn’t till I got the van I saw it was unattended, and keys were in it, and the engine was running … I basically jumped in it and drove it off.”

Ross said he later found out about Kondor’s death through the internet and that he would have “stopped the van and run off if I had known he was there”. He is due to be sentenced on Friday.

Kondor, who lived in Sheffield, was employed by a company called SP Transport Group, which described him after his death as “more than just a colleague – he was a friend, a confidant and a valued member of our team”. His family listened to the verdict via a video link to court.