Dramatic police footage has shown a burglar’s Audi A5 veering off the side of a road following a high-speed car chase officers said was one of the worst cases of dangerous driving they had witnessed.
Patrick Jones, 28, from Liverpool, was jailed for two years at Winchester Crown Court on Thursday after taking part in a series of high-value burglaries at commercial premises across Salisbury and south Wiltshire.
He was disqualified from driving for eight years and three months for dangerous driving after leading police officers on a high-speed chase on the A500 in 2018.
Sentencing Jones, Judge Andrew Barnett said he “continued to drive at colossal speed”, adding it was “an appalling piece of driving, one of the worst cases of driving I’ve seen”.
In November 2018, officers from Wiltshire Police’s Community Tasking Team in Salisbury identified a high-powered red Audi A5 involved in a string of burglaries carried out by a gang.
At one of the premises, police estimated £45,000 of goods were taken.
Officers from the Central Motorway Policing Group and Cheshire Police attempted to stop the vehicle, driven by Jones, when it was spotted on the A500.
Footage shows how several police vehicles were rammed during the pursuit before Jones’s car veered off the side of the road.
Jones then fled on foot across the dual carriageway, and was on the run until he was identified and arrested in the West Midlands last month.
Detective Constable Cerys Jones said: “We welcome the fact that Jones has been brought to justice thanks to the skill and dedication of officers from Wiltshire Police with the support of colleagues from neighbouring forces.
“We hope this sentence sends out a clear message that Wiltshire is not an easy target. We have the skill, dedication and resources to bring offenders to justice and will not hesitate to do so.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article