Unlicensed motorbike rider jailed after filming himself during 130mph 33-mile A1 police chase
An unlicensed motorbike rider has been jailed after filming himself lead police on a 130mph chase.
Heart-stopping footage shows Dean Bruce, 33, weaving in and out of cars and lorries and running red lights while riding a powerful Kawasaki 600cc bike. He repeatedly comes inches away from ploughing into oncoming cars as he swerved onto the wrong side of the road.
Bruce led cops on a 33-mile chase from Bishop Auckland in Country Durham to Wallsend in North Tyneside on February 23 this year. At one point Bruce hit speeds of 130mph as he hurtled along the A1(M) - nearly twice the national limit.
Police were forced to abandon the chase for safety reasons but he was tracked by a National Police Air Service (NPAS) helicopter. Aerial footage showed him stop at a woman's house in Wallsend and pass her a bag over the garden gate.
Within minutes officers swooped on the area and arrested Bruce and a search of the woman's bedroom revealed his helmet cam which had filmed the chase. He was also found to have no licence or insurance and was driving on false number plates and was in possession of cannabis.
He admitted dangerous driving, fraudulent use of a registration plate, no insurance or licence, plus possession of cannabis at Durham Crown Court. The court heard he has two previous convictions for drug driving.
Bruce, of no fixed abode, was jailed for 15 months and handed a 31-month driving ban. PC Simpson, who chased Bruce, said: “Dean Bruce selfishly decided to gamble with the safety of everybody else on the road that day.
“Even when the pursuit was halted, his helmet cam shows that he continued to drive dangerously and without any regard for other motorists and pedestrians, which highlights the reason that we go to such lengths to get dangerous drivers stopped as quickly as possible.
“We’re committed to getting these people off the road, and we’ll use all the tactics at our disposal – including stingers, contact and helicopters – to do so. Don’t take your chances. Pull over and accept the consequences of your actions.”