Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Ashley Pemberton & William Walker

Drug driver ploughed into NHS worker after she finished 9-hour Covid ward shift

A drugged up driver seriously injured an NHS worker as she finished a gruelling nine-hour shift on a Covid ward by ploughing into her car after he led police on a 100mph chase.

Jacob Walsh, 23, wrote off the healthcare worker's car with her inside it just seconds after he reached 110mph in a 30mph zone.

The effects of the crash have left her unable to return to work since the incident, police said.

Shocking dashcam footage showed Walsh driving an uninsured black BMW 118 on the wrong side of the road at four roundabouts as police pursued him.

He narrowly avoids cars as he dangerously swerves into oncoming traffic during the 20 minute pursuit which also saw him drive on the wrong side of a dual carriageway.

Walsh, who was high on cocaine and cannabis at the time, then turns around on the carriageway and continues to evade the police.

Walsh was recorded reaching speeds of 100mph as he passed Airedale Hospital in Keighley, West Yorks.

Just seconds later he hits a car belonging to a healthcare worker who was driving home after a nine hour shift on a Covid ward.

He shunts her motor 15 metres, totally writing it off. She has not been able to work since due to the effects of the collision, police said.

Walsh, of Halifax, West Yorks., then makes off on foot before being caught and arrested by officers.

He was found guilty of dangerous driving, drug driving, and several document offences, on Wednesday, December 1 at Bradford Crown Court.

On Friday, December 3, he was sentenced to 12 months in jail for his offences.

North Yorkshire Police said its officers began giving chase to Walsh on April 25 2020, when he failed to stop for them on the outskirts of Hellifield, on the A65.

Officers found Walsh had put a set of registration plates on the BMW which belonged to a completely different vehicle. The BMW was uninsured.

Walsh was charged with dangerous driving, drug driving, fraudulently using a registration mark, using a vehicle without insurance and driving without a licence.

He was banned from driving for 18 months and ordered to pay a victims surcharge of £149.

PC Chris Howarth, of North Yorkshire Police's Operational Support Unit, said: "This was a shocking case of dreadful driving.

"Walsh showed absolutely no regard for the safety of other road users that day. The consequences of his actions were bad enough - and if it were not for the fact that there were only a few vehicles on the road due to the tight lockdown restrictions at this time, the outcome could have been even worse."

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.