Helicopter footage has been released by the National Police Air Service of the moment a driver tried to reverse into a police car before leading officers on a high-speed pursuit on the wrong side of a busy dual carriageway.
Oliver Howlett, 29, will spend 14-months behind bars after he admitted dangerous driving following the police chase in Northumberland on January 6 this year.
He was spotted by police behind the wheel of a Mercedes Sprinter van that was straddling the lanes of a dual carriageway in Blyth.
Howlett, who was disqualified from driving, was holding up traffic to try and facilitate a horse and cart race taking place ahead of him.
When police arrived the vehicle then attempted to flee the scene and began to travel on the wrongside of the Three Horse Shoes roundabout and on to Horton Road.
Officers switched on their lights and siren but Howlett refused to stop and led police on a pursuit through Northumberland.
In a bid to escape police he stopped on a narrow country lane and put the van in reverse in an attempt to ram officers before speeding off again.
Footage from the National Police Air Service (NPAS) helicopter then captured him weaving between traffic, driving at speed on the wrong-side of the road and travelling the wrong way on roundabouts.
Howlett eventually brought the vehicle to a stop in the middle of the A189 spine road in Blyth after coming millimeters from causing a collision with oncoming traffic.
He was arrested by police and later charged with a string of driving offences that he later admitted at Newcastle CC.
Now Howlett, of Lingcrest, Beacon Lough, Gateshead, has been imprisoned for 14 months by a judge and four-year driving ban that will begin upon his release from prison.
Following the case, Sergeant Glen Robson said that it was a “miracle” that Howlett did not cause a collision after leading police on a pursuit akin to “something in a Hollywood movie”.
Sgt Robson, of Northumbria Police’s Operation Dragoon team, said:
“The footage speaks for itself. This was a man who had no regard for other road users and put the life of innocent people at risk.
“Not only has he driven in a dangerous and reckless manner but he has deliberately tried to ram police officers off the road and it is a miracle that he did not kill anyone.
“He took the law into his own hands because he was banned from the roads and his desperate attempt to flee police was his final bid to avoid being arrested.
“It was great teamwork by motor patrols officers on the ground, and the NPAS team in the air, that led to him being brought into custody safely, without a serious collision taking place.
“Now he has been put behind bars after finally facing up to his crimes. This sentence reflects just how seriously this type of offending is taken by both the police and the courts.”
The helicopter was from NPAS Newcastle – one of 14 bases providing borderless air support to all police forces in England and Wales.
Ian Vause, Assistant Operations Director for NPAS in the North East, said:
“Suspects have few places to hide when they’re being tracked from the air.
“The NPAS crew provided a running commentary to the pursuing police units, allowing effective tactics to be employed.
“We’re glad we were able to support our colleagues from Northumbria Police to help bring this incident to a safe conclusion.”
Howlett had admitted a charge of dangerous driving, driving without a licence and driving whilst disqualified at Newcastle CC at an earlier hearing.
Got a story, video or one-off blog that you would like to share with us?
You can contact our team of former emergency services & armed forces personnel either through our Facebook page, via Twitter ( @ES_News_ ) or you can contact us via email: contact@emergency-services.news or call us on: 0115 888 0592
If you run or manage a ‘job’ social media account and you would like us to share one of your stories then send us a tweet or a message!
If you would like to write an article that you would like us to share (it can be about anything to do with the emergency services / NHS) whether you serve in the emergency services / NHS or whether you are a member of the public who has had a good experience with the emergency services, then feel free to contact our team; anonymously if you prefer.
We are proud to act as a voice for the emergency services, armed forces & health service, with over 500,000 people visiting our website each month.
Support our news, stories and blogs —>
Before you go...
We need your help. As former emergency services & armed forces personnel, we pride ourselves on bringing you important, fast-moving and breaking news stories which are free from the negative bias which is often directed at the emergency services by some sections of the mainstream media.
One of the reasons we started 'Emergency Services News' was because we became tired of reading badly informed stories about the emergency services which seemed only ever to highlight negative aspects of the job.
We want to be the unheard voice of the remarkable men and women who serve in the emergency services, NHS and armed forces. And with around 500k page views each month, we are getting there!
As income from ads, the mainstay source of income for most publishers, continues to decline; we need the help of our readers.
And remember, if you have a service, product or job vacancy that you would like to promote to our large readership, then you can buy advertising space in our articles.
You can support emergency services news from as little as £1. It only takes a minute. Every contribution, however big or small, is vital for our future.
Please help us to continue to highlight the life-saving work of the emergency services, NHS and armed forces by becoming a supporter.
