Criminal duo in stolen car smashed into Leeds learner driver having a lesson

Courton Durcan and Harrison Hawkins got out of the VW Scirocco, that they had fixed with false plates, and tried to flee following the collision in Bramley.

Leeds Crown Court heard that the car, worth £10,000, had been taken during a burglary in the Moor Allerton area on November 6 last year. The unknown culprits broke in and took the keys to the Scirocco and a £70,000 BMW both parked outside. The thieves then took the two vehicles.

On November 29, Durcan and Hawkins were spotted changing the registration plates on the Scirocco and were later seen by police with Durcan driving, Hawkins in the passenger seat and others in the back.

They then drove into the unsuspecting learner driver who was behind the wheel of a Vauxhall Astra on Edinburgh Road. Durcan then reversed and smash into the car again. It was thought he was trying to drive away. The Astra was left badly damaged.

They were both quickly arrested but gave no comments during their interview. They both later admitted aggravated vehicle taking, fraudulently using a false registration plates and dangerous driving.

Appearing in court this week, both were handcuffed during their sentencing hearing for the "safety of court staff". Durcan, 19, of Rossefield Drive, Bramley, has five previous convictions for 16 offences including burglaries, aggravated vehicle taking, car thefts and robbery. Hawkins, 21, of Third Avenue, Armley, has 15 convictions for 46 offences, including aggravated vehicle taking and burglaries.

Little mitigation was offered for either defendant, but for Hawkins, Caroline Abraham conceded that his best mitigation was his early guilty plea and that he was not driving the vehicle. Judge Tom Bayliss KC jailed the pair for 18 months and banned them from driving for two years and nine months.