Man arrested following pursuit in Chester

Officers have arrested a 23-year-old man following a pursuit in Chester.

At around 8.40am on Friday 27th February, an officer from the Constabulary’s Motorcycle Unit on patrol in Chester spotted a green Kawasaki motorbike being ridden by a man on Barrow Lane in Tarvin.

Suspecting the vehicle of having fake registration plates, the officer indicated the rider pull over; however, he failed to do so.

A pursuit was subsequently authorised, with the officer following the rider along country lanes at speeds of upwards of 80mph in both 30mph and 50mph zones.

The rider was also witnessed crossing over central road markings to the opposite side of the carriageway and driving round blind bends at considerable speeds.

Several road signs also clearly indicated that there was a closure ahead, however the rider ignored these and continued driving with the officer in pursuit.

The pursuit concluded when the rider reached the road closure, driving through roadwork barriers and then unsuccessfully attempting to navigate his way around a parked digger, causing him to come off of the vehicle.

After being detained by the pursuing officer, the 23-year-old from Ellesmere Port was subsequently arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving, drug driving, driving with false registration plates and driving without insurance. He was also arrested on suspicion of possession of cannabis.

He has since been released under investigation.

Police Constable John Millar, of the Motorcycle Unit, said:

"Whilst stopping a vehicle using fake registration plates may not seem like the most serious of crimes, we often find that those choosing to use vehicles with fake plates are often involved in other criminal activities and, in this instance, we found the rider to be in possession of class B drugs as well as driving under the influence.

"The pursuing officer in this incident clearly indicated to the rider to pull over, but they chose to ignore these requests and proceeded to travel at speeds in excess of the legal limit and towards a road closure.

"Choosing to get behind the wheel whilst under the influence of drugs, without the correct insurance and driving at high speeds are a recipe for disaster. All these factors create a greater risk to not only themselves, but other road users and pedestrians.”