Drug driver goes the wrong way down dual carriageway in dramatic 40-minute chase captured in police dashcam and helicopter footage
- Ethan Vernall,30, was captured in shocking video footage during a car chase
- He was spotted speeding through Stoke-on-Trent on April 19, 2020 by police
- The father-of-four was jailed for 14 months at Stoke on Trent Crown Court
- Police said after the court hearing that Vernall put the lives of the public at risk
Heart-stopping footage shows the terrifying moment a coked-up driver sped the wrong away along a dual carriageway during a dramatic 40 minute police chase.
Ethan Vernall,30, was captured in shocking dash-cam video leading officers on a high-speed pursuit through the streets of Stoke-on-Trent on April 19 last year.
The father-of-four can be seen narrowly avoided collisions with oncoming traffic after he travelled the wrong way along the A50 in a bid to evade capture.
Ethan Vernall, 30, was captured in shocking dash-cam video leading officers on a high-speed pursuit through the streets of Stoke-on-Trent on April 19 last year
Vernall, of Stone, Staffordshire, spent 40 minutes trying to escape from police
However, as well as squad cars on the ground, he was being tracked by a police helicopter
Ethan Vernall, 30, was jailed for 14 months and banned from driving as a result of the 40 minute car chase
Traffic police had tried to stop Vernall after he was seen seen speeding in a blue, VW Golf by plain clothes officers on King Street, in the Fenton area of the city.
Police followed him for 40 minutes during which time he went the wrong way around roundabouts, ran through red lights and hit speeds of 70mph.
One officer can be heard in the footage saying ‘abort dude’ after Vernall began driving in the opposite direction along the dual carriageway.
The reckless driver was eventually caught after his tyres were burst by a police stinger, which caused him to crash the vehicle and flee on foot.
He can be seen being wrestled to the ground on a residential street before officers recovered a large quantity of drugs and around £3,000 in cash from the vehicle.
Vernall, of Stone, Staffordshire, pleaded guilty of drug driving, failing to stop and other related offences at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court last month.
The helicopter filmed how Vernall desperately tried to escape the attentions of the police
He has now been sentenced to 14 months behind bars and disqualified from driving for three years and seven months.
A second man, who was also arrested at the scene for drugs offences, has since been released under investigation.
PC Thomas Cordall, from Staffordshire Police’s Roads Policing Unit, said: ‘Vernall’s actions put other members of the public at risk and he showed that he was going to do whatever it took to not be stopped by police.
‘Thanks to great partnership work with the National Police Air Service and shift 5 response officers we were able to detain Vernall safely without further incident.
After crashing his VW Golf into a parked car, Vernell attempted to escape on foot, but was tracked by the helicopter’s thermal camera
‘I welcome the courts verdict and the sentence handed to Vernall.
‘I hope this sends a clear message to those using our roads that we will use all available tactics to bring those intent on committing crime to justice.’
Head of the force’s Operational Support Directorate, Chief Superintendent Elliott Sharrard-Williams said: ‘Through our work with Operation Lightning we continue to do all we can to ensure these dangerous drivers are taken off our roads and our communities are safe.
‘Our partnership with the National Police Air Service is key in achieving this as they can safely monitor a situation when our officers on the ground can’t.’