A driver who was caught on bodycam footage ramming into a Metropolitan Police officer has been jailed for four years.
Joseph Ward, 24, left Inspector Tony McGovern with “serious injuries” after he reversed into him on July 1 of last year, the Metropolitan Police said in a statement.
He was jailed at Wood Green Crown Court on Wednesday for 14 offences, including assault occasioning actual bodily harm, impersonating a police officer, dangerous driving, and failing to stop for police.
Mr McGovern was on a motorcycle patrol in Haringey when he became suspicious of Ward’s behaviour at the junction of Upton Road and Woolmer Road.
The violent crime taskforce officer spoke with Ward through the driver side window of his car after he came to a stop.
In the video, released by the Met Police, Ward can be seen to suddenly pull forward and then reverse ram into Mr McGovern, before driving away at speed.
The officer is thrown from his bike by the collision.
He gets up from the ground and immediately reaches for his radio, saying: “I’ve been rammed, I’ve been rammed.”
Mr McGovern was taken to hospital with injuries to his legs, shoulders and back.
In a statement he said that he is still recovering from the injuries he received during the incident.
I continue to recover from the injuries I suffered that day, however, I remain determined to serve the people of London and remove violent and dangerous offenders from the streets— Inspector Tony McGovern
“I have been a police officer for 18 years and I never expected to be deliberately rammed off my motorbike in such a violent and aggressive act, he said.
“I continue to recover from the injuries I suffered that day, however, I remain determined to serve the people of London and remove violent and dangerous offenders from the streets.”
After Ward was identified as the driver, officers discovered he was already wanted for an offence on June 23 of last year, when he posed as a police officer and demanded money from another driver on Eade Road, in Haringey.
He was also linked to two other offences, including being involved in a collision on Crouch Hill on July 5 of last year, and failing to stop for police on Goat Lane on July 6, damaging two police cars.
Detective Chief Superintendent Lee Hill, who leads the violent crime taskforce, described Ward as a “dangerous” man.
“Joseph Ward is a dangerous man and I have no doubt that he would have gone on to commit more offences,” he said.
“I am pleased that he has received a custodial sentence and I praise Tony for his outstanding bravery.”
