Banned driver who damaged four police cars during 20-minute chase is jailed for more than a year

A disqualified driver who smashed up four police cars in a nail-biting chase has been jailed for sixteen months.

Officers were called to East India Dock Road in east London following sightings of a Mercedes linked to a gang member, a court heard.

Police signalled for the driver Shuahan Uddin to stop, leading to a chase. Officers tried to stop the Mercedes with tactical manoeuvres, but footage shows how Uddin rammed past them on several occasions as the chase moved into Essex on the M11 motorway.

At one stage, Uddin appears to have been shunted to one side of the road. While officers got out of their cars to arrest him, he managed to drive away again.

Shuahan Uddin attempts to evade police (Met Police)

Police eventually boxed in Uddin's car against the central reservation of the M11 and Tasered him as he tried to run away.

The chase lasted 20 minutes in total. Four police cars were damaged, as well as a car belonging to a member of the public. One officer suffered "minor" injuries, police said.

Uddin appears to evade arrest temporarily after seeming boxed in (Met Police)

Uddin pleaded guilty on April 17 at Thames Crown Court to dangerous driving, driving without a licence or insurance and causing criminal damage to motor vehicles.

He was sentenced to 16 months’ imprisonment at Snaresbrook Crown Court on July 3. He has also been banned from driving for four years and 11 months.

Ruddin is shunted into the central reservation of the M11, ending the chase (Met Police)

Police also discovered he had previously also been hit with a driving ban, as well as sitting in the front seat of a car.

Police Constable Josh Haase, the officer in the case, said: "Uddin was intent on evading arrest at all costs and showed a complete disregard for the safety of police officers and other road users.

A damaged police car after the chase with Uddin (Met Police)

"The considerable damage caused to the police vehicles means several police cars are off the road for a considerable time whilst they are repaired.

"This was a sustained period of dangerous driving that was extremely fortunate not to cause a serious injury so it is right that Uddin will now spend a period of time in jail. Road traffic officers will continue to deny criminals the use of our roads and will continue to put themselves at the forefront of protecting the public’’