Wrexham man led police on chase whilst over drink limit

Guy Dunn, of Stryt Maelor in Wrexham, appeared at Llandudno Magistrates Court for sentence on Thursday morning.

The 30-year-old had previously admitted numerous offences, including dangerous driving, drink driving, possession of cocaine, driving without insurance and driving whilst banned.

Elen Owen told the court that in the early hours of June 22 this year, police in an unmarked vehicle spotted a Citroen van travelling at speed on the A5152 towards Johnstown.

It was being driven by the defendant and he had a female passenger.

After narrowly missing the police car, officers activated lights and sirens and a pursuit began.

What followed was a 16-minute high speed chase, during which the defendant reached 60mph in a 20 zone.

He took narrow, single track roads and went around a roundabout six times in an attempt to shake the police off.

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He entered the village of Minera at 50mph - the speed limit being 20.

Eventually, he was stopped on Ruthin Road when the vehicle was stung and the front tyres deflated.

He refused to comply with breath and saliva testing at the roadside, but a reading taken at the police station showed he had 44 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath; the limit being 35.

When his pockets were searched, two small wraps of cocaine were found.

And subsequent checks revealed he not only had no insurance, he has never passed a driving test and so has no licence.

Ms Owen said the offences put him in breach of a suspended sentence imposed in April, also for dangerous driving.

Guy Dunn (NWP) (Image: North Wales Police) Those earlier offences happened on December 30 last year, when he drove "dangerously and erratically" and was pursued around Oswestry before running from the vehicle and ultimately being captured.

Dunn's criminal record revealed three previous convictions for eight offences, including two dangerous drives - one in 2017 and the one for which he received the suspended sentence in April this year.

Euros Jones, defending, told the court: "The best mitigation I can put forward is that he admitted the offences in interview and deserves full credit.

"Alcohol is the common denominator in his offences and he has already started courses in HMP Berwyn.

"He's a hard working young man who has finally realised that he cannot continue in this vein.

"He simply wishes to do his time."

Judge Timothy Petts told the defendant: "This is not the first time you've been in trouble for your driving by any means.

"But you've never even passed a driving test, so you should not be driving.

"You were given a suspended sentence and within a matter of weeks you were doing the same thing again.

"Little can be said on your behalf, but you did admit the offences in interview. You could hardly do otherwise.

"Fortunately, there was no traffic. Had there been, this situation could have been much worse."

The Judge jailed Dunn for 12 months and activated his breached suspended sentence of 10 months in full, to run consecutive, making a total of 22 months.

The defendant received a driving ban of five years, with an additional 11 months to reflect the half of his sentence which must be served in custody.