Burglar jailed after leading police on car chase at ‘colossal speed’

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.”