King's Cliffe man jailed for dangerous driving

A man who put the lives of other drivers at risk during a desperate attempt to evade police has been jailed.

Ben Longworth, 39, was wanted by police for not paying for petrol twice when he was spotted driving a silver Skoda Octavia by officers in the early hours of January 11.

The officers activated their blue lights and signalled for Longworth to pull over on the A47 heading towards Thorney.

Longworth, who is from King's Cliffe, ignored them and began overtaking vehicles at speed.

At the roundabout in Thorney he turned right and drove the wrong way around the roundabout, causing an HGV to take evasive action.

He left the roundabout on the wrong side of the road and headed back towards Peterborough on the A47, causing two oncoming cars to swerve as he approached them head on.

Travelling at speeds of up to 95mph, Longworth approached Eye where officers used a stinger but he continued and a second stinger was deployed before his vehicle came to a stop.

Longworth pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, driving while disqualified, failing to stop, failing to provide a specimen for analysis, driving without insurance and making off without payment.

He was sentenced to a 23 months and 56 days in prison and was disqualified from driving for three years at Peterborough Crown Court.

Sgt Chris Payne said: "Longworth’s driving put the lives of all road users in the area at risk and it's sheer luck that no one was seriously injured.

"This case highlights our commitment to keeping our roads safe by bringing dangerous motorists to justice."