Ex-Rugby player threw drugs out of BMW window during 139mph police chase on M56

A former rugby player threw drugs out of the car window as he drove at 139mph during a high-speed police chase on the M56. Maredudd Francis, 31, lobbed the packages out of the car during the pursuit from Manchester before he smashed into another vehicle and injured a passenger inside. Prosecutor Joshua Gorst told the court how a police officer on mobile patrol decided to stop a grey BMW car on the M56 motorway on September 29 last year.

It was driven by the defendant, from Coed Aben, Wrexham, as he drove from Manchester towards North Wales near Junction 11. Francis failed to stop and packages were thrown out of his passenger window, WalesOnline[1] reports. Mold Crown Court heard how he reached speeds of 139mph during the pursuit.

He off the motorway at Junction 11 and ran a red light, narrowly missing a lorry, before going to rejoin he M56 heading east and smashing into a Toyota at a roundabout and leaving the passenger inside injured.

Francis' BMW crashed into a safety barrier and he got out before kneeling down and being arrested by responding officers. In court, the prosecutor said his eyes were bloodshot and glazed and there was a strong smell of cannabis. The officer believed he was under the influence of drugs.

The officer searched the BMW and found GBP2,000 in cash and a receipt for a bicycle worth GBP3,481. Later police searched Francis' one-bedroomed ground floor flat in Coed Aben and uncovered Rolex watch and other designer goods. There were also several bags of white powder which was identified as 668.5g of cocaine.

Police found other drugs and a total of GBP18,121.96 in cash including the money in the car. Philip Tully, defending, said Francis accepted he was supplying at street level and is remorseful, adding he had been 'foolish' to drive away from the police officer. Francis admitted possession with intent to supply cocaine and cannabis and dangerous driving.

He was jailed at Mold Crown Court on Tuesday (January 28). The judge His Honour Judge Parry said: "I suspect I don't need to tell you the harm that these drugs cause in our communities not only to our health but to householders, businesses." He also falls to be sentenced for possession with intent to supply GBP3,500 of a Class B drug. Francis was jailed for 40 months for possession of cocaine with intent to supply and for 12 months consecutively for dangerous driving, making a total of four years and four months' imprisonment.

He is banned from driving for two years on his release and must pass an extended retest.

There was no separate penalty for the Class B offence.

The court heard there will be a Proceeds of Crime Act hearing later this year.

References

1. ^ WalesOnline (www.walesonline.co.uk)