A man who rammed two police cars and drove the wrong way on a dual carriageway to evade capture has been jailed. Daniel Barrass, of no fixed address, was chased by police up the A1 on Saturday, November 27, after the camper van he stole from West Yorkshire was linked to the attempted theft of a campervan in Lincolnshire.
The 32 year old fled after he was interrupted and made his way on to the A46 towards Newark, Nottinghamshire. As officers caught up with his van at around 5.10pm, Barrass, realising he was being followed, began swerving between lanes before going all the way around a roundabout to see if the police car followed.
After entering the A1 northbound he then slowed to only 15 miles per hour on the slip road, ignoring flashing blue lights, and then reversed straight into the front of a police car. Speeding off, Barrass continued his efforts to avoid being captured before suddenly stopping and reversing at speed into the police car again.
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Nottinghamshire Police said the officers, who were fearing for their lives, had to take the brunt of the hit and stop their car from rolling and hitting pedestrians behind them. No one was injured in the incident.
He also rammed an armed response car before colliding with a member of the public after driving in the wrong direction on the A1 – leaving the victim's car badly damaged and sideways on the road. The chase finally ended after the camper van came to a halt and Barrass was arrested.
Barrass appeared at Nottingham Crown Court on Wednesday, April 27 having pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicle taking, attempt theft of motor vehicle, driving while disqualified, driving without insurance, and dangerous driving. He was sentenced to 12 months in prison and also disqualified from driving for four years 10 months.
Detective Constable Bethany Sumner, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “This was an extremely dangerous piece of driving that not only put Barrass at risk of injury but also members of the public and our officers. Thankfully our officers were uninjured with the police cars taking the brunt of the impacts inflicted by Barrass.
“However, a woman was injured after the van collided with her vehicle as she travelled the correct way up the A1. That must have been extremely scary to see a car travelling directly at her on the wrong side of the road, and it’s incredibly lucky she wasn’t more seriously injured.
“This incident placed everyone in the path of the van in danger and could have resulted in some serious injuries. I hope the sentence Barrass has received today will give him time to reflect on the danger he put everyone in that day.
“It also showed just how neighbouring forces can work together to apprehend criminals even when they cross borders into different counties and with the help of Lincolnshire officers we were able to successfully arrest Barrass for this dangerous crime.
“This type of driving will never be tolerated and I’m thankful no one was seriously injured as a result of the incident.
“I hope it shows anyone else thinking they can evade officers and take part in dangerous police chases that we will use all the resources available to us to catch those responsible for endangering the public.”
