Motorist mounted Wakefield town pavements to flee police over prison-return fears

Matthew Lee Hunt panicked and reached speeds of up to 60mph in built-up areas of Ossett when officers tried to pull him over when records showed that the car belonged to another driver.

It happened shortly before 11.30am on November 25, 2021. He first accelerated away on Pildacre Lane, reaching 50mph in a 30mph zone and mounting the pavement to avoid traffic.

He then tried to turn into into another road but misjudged the corner and had to reverse, smashing into the trailing police vehicle. The 28-year-old took off again and reached 60mph on Dale Street before reaching the junction of Swithenbank Street and High Street where he undertook a queue of traffic on the pavement.

Hunt eventually got out and ran, along with his passenger, but was quickly apprehended. He gave a no-comment interview to police but admitted while being arrested: “I only didn’t stop because I was on licence”.

Prosecutor Jemima Stephenson told Leeds Crown Court that Hunt, of Wellington Walk, Dewsbury, had seven previous convictions for 18 offences. He was out on licence at the time of the police chase after receiving a two-year jail term and two-year extended licence period in 2021 for inflicting GBH.

A probation officer addressed the court and said Hunt had “shown genuine remorse” for his latest offending. He said he was out all night with a friend legitimately collecting car parts, and his friend had asked him to drive because he was tired. The officer said: “He made a fateful decision to avoid the police. It reflects a pattern of historical, poor decision making.”

Mitigating on his behalf, Ryan Donoghue added that Hunt gave an early guilty plea to dangerous driving, and driving without a licence or insurance. He said he had two children with a third on the way.

The judge, Recorder David Brooke KC, told Hunt: “It was a deliberate disregard for safety. There was excessive speed in a built-up area and it was aggressive driving. You have an unattractive record, but it’s quite clear you are sorry for what happened.”

He was given a six-month jail sentence, disqualified from driving for 12 months and told he will have to take an extended re-test.