By Samantha Jones-
An irresponsible driver who stole a campervan and deliberately reversed at speed into a marked patrol car seriously injuring two police officers has been jailed for four years.
Law breaker, Liam Anderson, who has a long criminal history of 38 convictions for 75 offences, included repeat offences of dangerous driving and aggravated vehicle taking, Bradford Crown Court heard.
Anderson, 33, from West Yorkshire, was spotted at the wheel of the hot-wired Ford Freda taken from outside an address in Keighley on June 22, 2021.
Two cops on patrol in the Haworth area saw the stolen grey van being driven in a suspicious manner at 3am that morning, prosecutor Imran Khan said.
They activated their blue lights but the vehicle made off at speed. The officers followed behind but called for back-up from a specialist pursuit team.
The van then parked up on the narrow main street in the nearby village of Stanbury, Mr Khan said. Officers in the patrol car which pulled over a fair distance behind the vehicle were shocked when the criminal reversed at speed hitting the police vehicle, and sending it spinning 90 degrees.
The officer at the wheel sustained a fractured wrist and his colleague a fractured ankle and severe pain in her ribs.
The driver sped of after the crash, abandoning the damaged vehicle under the misapprehension that he would evade detection.
Anderson was caught after DNA found on a cap he negligently left in the vehicle pointed cops to his identity. His DNA was also found on the van’s steering wheel, handbrake and gear stick had Anderson’s DNA on them.
He was subsequently arrested on March 22 last year and went on to plead guilty to two offences of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.
The police vehicle was written off in the smash leaving the officer at the wheel feeling ‘lucky’ to have escaped with a fractured wrist. He was unable to go to the gym or use his bicycle afterwards.
His family was seriously questioning if he should continue in his role as a police officer.
His colleague said she was left shaken and in great pain. But she would go to Anderson’s assistance if he was involved in a car accident.
Mitigating for him, Ian Smith said that Anderson was doing well in the almost 11 months he had been remanded in HMP Leeds. He had a trusted job in the stores and was being treated for his mental health problems.
While not minimising the officers’ injuries, they were not life-threatening.
Anderson made a split-second decision when trying to get away. He didn’t intend to hurt anyone.
Judge Colin Burn banned him from driving for four years and until he passes and extended retest.
“This was a reckless causing of serious injury to two police officers,” he said.
They were upholding the law when Anderson reversed into their vehicle at high speed.
“It was terrifying for both of them. They had no idea if they were even going to survive the collision,” Judge Burn stated