Drug problem driver tried to escape cops in Sutton

A banned Mansfield driver with a Class A drug problem “panicked” and fled from police when he was spotted behind the wheel of a pal’s Mercedes.
Mansfield Magistrates CourtMansfield Magistrates Court
Mansfield Magistrates Court

Inderpal Singh was seen by police officers driving at speed on Alfreton Road, Sutton, on April 8, but got out at a nearby petrol station and ran off before he was found.

Prosecutor Leanne Townshend said Singh had been banned for 36 months, in July 2018, for failing to provide a specimen, and had similar convictions “but nothing for some time because of a lengthy custodial sentence.”

He is due to appear for a trial at Nottingham Crown Court for dissimilar matters, on May 7 and 8, she added.

Sarah Neale, mitigating, said Singh was doing a favour for a friend, taking the Mercedes to a valet, and panicked when he was spotted by police.

She said since his release from prison he had “built up his life”, but a cocaine habit meant “all his good work has crumbled”.

She said he had not taken the drug for ten days, but had been “spending copious amounts of money on it” and doing “odd jobs to make ends meet.”

Singh, 31, of Wood Street, admitted driving while disqualified and without insurance, and failing to attend a court hearing, when he appeared at Mansfield Magistrates Court, on Wednesday.

District judge Jonathan Taaffe told him: “You have made it quite clear that you have no intention of complying with the court order imposed last year.”

Singh received 16 weeks in prison, and was banned for 12 months, which will run alongside the current disqualification, which ends in 2021.

No costs or compensation were ordered, but he must pay a £115 government surcharge.