Dangerous driver handed jail term and extended driving ban

A 26-year-old driver who drove at dangerous speeds of up to 130mph to evade police officers has been sentenced to more than two years in prison and banned from driving.

At 6.45pm on Sunday, April 27 this year, officers from Northamptonshire Police’s Roads Policing Team were asked to stop a silver Mercedes C200 being driven from Kettering towards Wellingborough on the A509.

They spotted the car on the A45, near Great Doddington, and indicated for the driver to stop, however instead of pulling over, Casey Edwards accelerated and drove off at excessive speed, reaching up to 130mph.

As they continued along the A45, Edwards’ driving became more reckless as he almost forced one of the police cars off the road at 100mph as they passed a broken-down vehicle just after the Brackmills junction.

Edwards left the A45 at the next junction, driving at excessive speeds reaching 60mph through residential streets, driving the wrong way round roundabouts and mounting a pavement as well as performing undertaking manoeuvres.

However, the road finally ran out for Edwards in Rowtree Road, Northampton, when he crashed his Mercedes into the side of a KIA Niro car, forcing it into a brick wall and causing minor injuries to the occupants.

The impact of the collision caused Edwards to lose control of his car and collide with wooden bollards before coming to a stop in a bush. Despite running to a nearby garden, he was swiftly arrested.

Edwards was subsequently charged with dangerous driving, failing to stop at the scene of a road collision, criminal damage to property under the value of £5,000, driving otherwise in accordance with a licence and driving without insurance.

On Tuesday, April 29, at Northampton Magistrates’ Court, he pleaded guilty to all charges and his case was committed to the county’s crown court for sentencing.

Last month (July 4) Edwards, of no fixed address, was sentenced at Northampton Crown Court to 26 months’ imprisonment and disqualified from driving for 31 months. He will need to sit an extended test before being allowed behind the wheel.

He received no separate penalty for the other two driving offences, however, was ordered to pay a £187 surcharge in full upon release from prison.

Arresting officer PC Matthew Bland of the Roads Policing Team said: “I hope Casey Edwards is aware that his dangerous and reckless use of the roads that day put the lives of innocent people at risk. It was just sheer luck no-one was seriously injured.

“Reducing the number of people who are killed or seriously injured on the county’s roads continues to be a priority for our team, and so I am pleased that the courts have helped to remove another irresponsible and illegal driver from our roads.”

Tragically in 2024, 31 people never returned home safely to their loved ones following a collision in Northamptonshire and 243 required urgent medical assistance for serious or life-changing injuries.

Anyone with information about road safety concerns or any vehicle crime is asked to report it online at Report | Northamptonshire Police or call Northamptonshire Police on 101. Alternatively, you can call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Always call 999 in the event of an emergency, such as a crime in progress or where life is at risk.