Driver in stolen Renault who reached 110mph during M62 chase told it was 'a miracle' nobody was killed

Sean Brennan had stolen petrol from a garage earlier in the day and tried to flee from police when they later saw him on the M62.

He then collided with a police vehicle when he tried to head the wrong way on a roundabout in Tingley.

He was jailed at Leeds Crown Court this week. Prosecutor Emily Hassell said that scaffolder Brennan put £108 worth of fuel in the Renault on the morning of July 10, 2022. But he then drove away from the BP Garage in Castleford without paying.

The garage worker contacted the police, and around two hours later the vehicle was spotted westbound on the M62 at J30, Rothwell.

The 31-year-old accelerated away and was driving on the hard shoulder and weaving around cars as he reached eye-watering speeds. He then exited at J28, Tingley Interchange, when he attempted to go against the traffic on the roundabout.

However, a police car made "tactical contact" with him to bring the chase to an end and he was arrested at the scene. He gave a prepared statement during his police interview in which he admitted the offences.

Brennan, of Cliffe Hill View, Skelmanthorpe, admitted making off without payment, dangerous driving and breach of bail conditions, after he went on holiday to Spain last year.

He has six previous convictions for 13 offences. A probation report into his latest offences suggested he paid £500 for the Renault and knew it was stolen, claiming he was "ashamed" of his actions. Mitigating, Stephen Uttley said: "He is absolutely under no illusions that he could get a custodial sentence."

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Judge Alistair Macdonald KC told Brennan: "It's a miracle, and I mean that word in the proper sense, that nobody was seriously hurt or killed, swerving in and out of vehicles at 110mph."

He jailed him for 15 months, banned him from driving for two years and told him he must take an extended retest to get his licence back.