Drugged-up driver in stolen Mercedes crashes into police vehicle during Halifax car chase

A drugged-up driver who hit a police car during a high-speed pursuit through Halifax has been jailed for a total of 40 months.
Terry Dunne was jailed for a total of 40 monthsTerry Dunne was jailed for a total of 40 months
Terry Dunne was jailed for a total of 40 months

Prolific offender Terry Dunne, 44, was spotted behind the wheel of a Mercedes less than an hour after the £25,000 car had been stolen during an early morning house burglary in Elland.

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Dunne, who accepted he had been using cocaine, was said to have driven off in a panic and carried on driving even when he collided with a police car which had been trying to stop him.

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Prosecutor Jessica Heggie told Bradford Crown Court that the pursuit, which began in the Charlestown Road area of Halifax, lasted about seven minutes and involved Dunne driving the wrong way down a one-way street narrowly avoiding another motorist.

Although it was raining heavily Dunne reached speeds of 80mph on 50mph roads before the officers lost sight of the Mercedes.

Miss Heggie said the officers searched the area and eventually located the abandoned car and Dunne was found hiding nearby.

Dunne, of no fixed abode, admitted charges of handling the stolen Mercedes and dangerous driving.

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The court heard Dunne, who has worked as a welder, had 26 convictions for 76 offences on his criminal record.

Barrister Jayne Beckett, for Dunne, accepted he had taken cocaine and said that at the time of the offending her client had been thrown out of his then home and had lost his job.

“He just got himself into a chaotic state,” she submitted.

“He knows now that he’s got to turn away from all drug abuse and offending. He’s someone who can work and can live as a law-abiding citizen.”

Judge Colin Burn said the offending was aggravated by Dunne’s “bad record” of previous convictions and the handling offence was committed very soon after the car had been stolen in a house burglary.

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Dunne, who was disqualified from driving for 32 months, was jailed for 32 months for the handling stolen Mercedes with an additional eight months imposed for the dangerous driving.

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