- ITV Report
Getaway driver jailed after 180mph police chase in Audi hot rod
A getaway driver who reached speeds of 180mph in a souped-up Audi has been jailed for nine years by a judge who called his driving "atrocious".
Ben Westwood, 33, was sentenced at Wolverhampton Crown Court for conspiracy to burgle, conspiracy to steal and dangerous driving. The court heard that he was the leader of a gang which carried out a string of robberies across the Midlands over the past year.
The chase was captured on camera from a police helicopter:
Westwood gave chase after attempting to rob a cash machine in Wolverhampton on January 13. The car was travelling so fast that sparks can be seen spraying from the rear wheels.
West Midlands Police said he fled the scene at the wheel of an Audi, travelling on to the M6 northbound through Hilton Park services. At one point he performed a handbrake and started driving in the wrong direction along on the motorway.
A force spokesman said:
The car, worth £85,000 and one of only two of that particular type in the country, turned out to be Westwood's undoing.
Police realised it had been stolen from Stourport-on-Seven in Worcestershire the previous August. The gang used a string of different number plates to avoid detection, Sky News reports.
Westwood, from Wednesfield, Wolverhampton, later abandoned the car at a block of flats where he was arrested after police dogs found him inside a property.
Recorder Nigel Baker QC told Westwood today:
Westwood's four co-defendants were all jailed for varying lengths of time for conspiracy to steal.