A DRIVER who mounted a pavement, went the wrong way around a roundabout and forced oncoming traffic to stop as he tried to flee police has been jailed.
Duran Amet sped at more than 60mph on a 30mph road before driving into a dead end, abandoning the car and running off into traffic on the Avon Ring Road.
Amet, aged 36, was jailed for 28 weeks after he admitted dangerous driving, driving while disqualified, driving without insurance, failing to stop for police and using a vehicle without a valid MOT.
Police officers tried to stop a Ford Focus estate on September 10 as it approached the Wick Wick roundabout on the ring road, between Bromley Heath and Emersons Green, after it was flagged as uninsured.
Instead of pulling over, Amet drove off down Folly Brook Road towards Emerald Park industrial estate, forcing oncoming traffic to stop, driving on a footpath and reaching more than 60mph as he tried to evade the officers.
He was carrying a 16-year-old passenger, who was not wearing a seatbelt.
After driving the wrong way around a roundabout Amet drove into Longmead Road, a dead end.
There he dumped the car before running through a hedge and over a fence and onto the ring road, where traffic had to stop on the dual carriageway to avoid him and a police officer chasing him on foot.
After his arrest Amet, of Berwick Road in Easton, was remanded in custody and jailed at Bristol Magistrates Court the following day.
PC Jack Fare said: “Amet’s driving showed a complete disregard for the safety of other road users and pedestrians. Throughout the incident, his actions created significant risk to members of the public.
“It is particularly concerning that he carried out these dangerous manoeuvres while a passenger, who was a minor and not wearing a seatbelt, was in the vehicle.
“We welcome the custodial sentence, which reflects the seriousness of his offending.”
A video of the police pursuit and arrest can be seen at tinyurl.com/yp3w3hx8.