"Prolific" burglar jailed follow high speed car chase through Havering
He crashed the stolen Audi he was driving into a tree
A prolific burglar who drove a stolen car at 70mph, at times on the wrong side of the road, as he tried to flee from police has been jailed.
Lewis Thomas, 22, of Milner Road in Dagenham, pleaded guilty to a string of offences including two residential burglaries in Rainham, dangerous driving and aggravated taking and driving away.
He was jailed for four years and disqualified from driving for four years.
This comes after he crashed the stolen Audi he was driving into a tree, left the car and ran into a ravine in an attempt to hide from officers who had pursued him.
The court heard that on Wednesday, 20 January, PC’s Gee, Lamb and Solanke of the East Roads Policing Team were on patrol when they were alerted to a stolen Audi on the move in the Rainham area of Havering.
The officers made their way to the area and managed to accurately predict where the car would have headed based on the information they had.
When they spotted the vehicle it made off and a pursuit ensued where the vehicle sped up to 70mph, mounting the central reservation and travelling on the wrong side of the carriageway.
The car eventually collided with a tree and Thomas made off on foot along a ravine.
The officers attempted to shadow the suspect and the police helicopter, NPAS, guided the officers on the ground to where the suspect was taking shelter.
PC Gee and PC Solanke found Thomas and arrested him on suspicion of burglary, while PC Lamb secured the stolen car.