Driver who was banned after ramming cop cars in 125mph chase reoffends

A banned driver who rammed police cars during a 125mph motorway chase has been jailed for his crimes. Jonathan Walsh wrote off a friend’s Audi Q7 during the pursuit and he was given a suspended sentence as a final chance in March this year. But the 38-year-old, from Stratton near Bude [1], reoffended four times within two months.

He broke an order to stay away from an ex-partner three times and defied his driving ban by taking her for a ride which ended in him crashing after suffering a seizure. In the initial offence, he took a friend’s car from his home in north Cornwall and drove it 175 miles to Swindon where he and two accomplices carried out a brazen shoplifting raid on a sports shop. He then headed back to Cornwall at speeds of more than 120mph before police succeeded in boxing him in on the southbound M5 in East Devon.

They smashed the windows to try to get him out.

Walsh responded by reversing into an armed response vehicle so violently that he caused GBP8,200 damage, pushing it back far enough for him to escape the roadblock by hitting a second police car, ripping off a door and narrowly missing an officer. He drove away down the hard shoulder at more than 100 mph before coming off the motorway at Exeter and crashing into two completely innocent motorists, writing off another car and the Audi.

He ran off but was chased down by police. He had only been out of prison for eight days, was banned from driving, and refused a breath test and drug swipe. He has 22 previous convictions for taking cars, and six for driving while disqualified.

Walsh admitted aggravated vehicle taking, theft, handling stolen goods, bilking, and driving while disqualified and uninsured. Appearing for sentencing at Exeter Crown Court today (Friday, August 9), Judge James Patrick told Walsh he had run out of chances to sort himself out, adding that only a prison sentence could now help break his cycle of offending. During the hearing, the court was told how he repeatedly went to his ex-partner’s home in Cornwall and was found hiding in the attic when police arrested him in May this year.

She had allowed him to resume contact despite a restraining order being in place. Walsh admitted breaching a restraining order and driving while disqualified. Felicity Payne, defending, said Walsh had been doing well on a drug rehabilitation order and the probation service was willing to continue working with him if he was allowed to return to the community.

She said he has mental health issues arising from a troubled childhood and suffers from seizures as a result of an attack while in prison. He was jailed for a total of two years and eight months by Judge James Patrick at Exeter Crown Court who told him: “You had been making some progress on the suspended sentence but you chose deliberately to ignore a court order three times and you drove while disqualified. You are a manipulative man and manipulated your former partner and the probation service.

You have a shocking record for driving and this offence of driving while disqualified was committed during a suspended sentence for serious driving matters.” He added: “You are aware that you suffer from seizures and you had one while driving and crashed. This is as bad an offence, in my judgment, as it is possible to imagine.”

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