Gunman chased Uber cabbie around Leeds after threatening to kill him

Mohammed Ali Wilayat ran red lights, tailgated, swerved into the road and attempted dangerous overtaking manoeuvres as the desperate cabbie tried to get away.

A recording of a frantic 999 call made by the Uber worker as he tried to flee was played during a recent trial at Leeds Crown Court.

Wilayat, 45, from Armley, denied the charges but was eventually found guilty of making threats to kill, making a threat with an imitation firearm and dangerous driving.

He was jailed for three years by Judge Christopher Batty this week who said: "Whatever got into you that night, you were very, very angry.

"You pursued him for quite a long time, terrifying him.

"We got a flavour of how scared he was from the call he made to the 999 operator."

The court was told that the Uber driver had turned onto Brudenell Avenue in the Hyde Park area at around 7pm on December 1 last year, only to find Wilayat's Audi blocking his way.

After an angry exchange, Wilayat then told him: "I've got a gun and I will shoot you."

As the taxi driver began pulling away, Wilayat produced the imitation gun, pointed it at him and shouted: "I will kill you."

He then chased the man in his Audi around the northern part of the city centre, which only came to an end on Park Street, next to the crown court.

Wilayat, of Carr Crofts, has two previous convictions for four offences and was jailed for 21 months in 2018 for stalking his ex wife and threatening to burn down a house.

Defending, Catherine Duffy said Wilayat was living in his car at the time of the road-rage incident, suffers from bipolar disorder and has battled with alcohol addiction for years, drinking up to three bottles of rum a day.

She said his time spent on remand had been "sobering experience" and given him "time to reflect" and added: "He is very remorseful and accepts what he did was inexcusable."

Wilayat was banned from driving for four years and told he must take an extended driving test once his ban expires.