Van drives wrong way down dual carriageway in shocking police chase footage
A van drove the wrong way down a dual carriageway for over half a kilometre during an early-morning police pursuit through the streets of Nottingham.
Police released dashcam footage of how the white van weaved and swerved around parked cars, ignored a red light, and went the wrong way around a roundabout on Thursday.
After making erratic manoeuvres including a u-turn and a loop around a group of garages, police say the chase reached a dangerous point when the van veered onto the wrong side of the A6514 Western Boulevard.
It reportedly drove into oncoming lanes of the dual carriageway, while running on its rims and sending sparks 'flying everywhere'.
With the van damaged, the driver eventually abandoned the vehicle and attempted to flee on foot, with officers tracking him down to a nearby garden.
The six-minute chase through Bilborough and Basford began in the early hours of June 26, when officers spotted a van being driven without its lights on.
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They stopped the vehicle on Wigman Road, but before speaking to officers the the driver sped off again, prompting a pursuit across the city's western suburbs.
Fortunately, the roads were quiet at the time, and no collisions occurred.
A 34-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving and failing to stop.
During a search of the van, a bag of cocaine was found, and the suspect later tested positive for the drug with a roadside kit, leading to further arrests on suspicion of drug-driving and possession of Class A drugs.
Inspector Chris Chell said: 'Thanks to the superior driving skills of our pursuing officers and the time when this happened, nobody was injured during this incident.
'The person behind the wheel of the van should count themselves extremely lucky that was the case though, as their standard of driving was very dangerous, as shown by the footage released.
'They went the wrong way around roundabouts, drove erratically through residential areas, and even travelled on the wrong side of a dual carriageway for a protracted amount of time.
'As I've said, thankfully because it was in the early hours of the morning, the roads weren't busy, otherwise this could've led to a very serious accident.
'By trailing the van from a safe distance, the officers in pursuit ensured this didn't happen and arrested a suspect soon afterwards, so they deserve a lot of credit for their efforts.'
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
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