Jail and fines for 20 drivers who lied about breaking law as West Yorkshire Police warns there is no hiding
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West Yorkshire Police's Prosecutions and Casualty Prevention Unit says there are more prosecutions in the pipeline as it continues to pursue motorists who try to hide their offending.
Its work has seen more than eight years of prison time handed out to law-breakers in the last year as well as 1,140 hours of unpaid work and five years in suspended sentences.
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Hide AdThe unit says a combination of its investigations, dash cam and helmet cam footage, as well as a special police webpage which the public can use to submit footage of traffic offences, has made it very hard for dangerous drivers to try and duck their way out of prosecutions.
Rachel Wainwright, who works for the specialist unit, said: “Speeding and dangerous driving costs lives in West Yorkshire as we have sadly seen time and again on our roads.
“The Digital Submissions and Investigation Team was formed to investigate cases in which drivers have been caught speeding but denied being behind the wheel, often by claiming they had sold the vehicle on or someone else was driving.
“The number of criminal cases we have now successfully brought before the courts should demonstrate how hard it now is for offenders to pull the wool over our eyes and evade prosecution.”
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Hide AdIn a recent prosecution on May 20, a 26-year-old Dewsbury man was given an eight month suspended prison sentence, 240 hours community service and a £399 fine for speeding and perverting the course of justice.
He had been captured speeding on the A638 Ossett bypass in July 2019 but denied it was him, claiming he had sold the car on.
Police enquiries with online advertising platforms discovered that he had not, in fact, put the car up for sale until months after the offence. The driver remained insured on the vehicle and was paying his monthly premium, despite his claim he had sold it.
In another recent case in May, a Bradford man who twice provided false details to police after his car was caught speeding received an 18-month suspended prison sentence and 240 hours of unpaid work. He claimed other people with no known connection to the vehicle had been driving.
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Hide AdFines worth tens of thousands of pounds have now been handed out to drivers as a result of cases brought by the unit, which was formed in 2019 to investigate attempts to deny being behind the wheel at the time of traffic offences.
It is part of the West Yorkshire Casualty Prevention Partnership which aims to prevent deaths and serious injuries on the county's roads by ensuring those who choose to commit traffic offences are prosecuted for their actions.
Since the investigations team was formed it has dealt with 345 offenders for traffic-related offences including dangerous driving, failing to furnish driver information and perverting the course of justice.
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Hide AdIt has also prosecuted 4,290 drivers as a result of the public's dash cam and helmet cam submissions.
Ms Wainwright said: “Those who try and deny speeding offences should also be aware they are, in fact, perverting the course of justice which is a serious criminal offence and results in you having a criminal record. Having this offence on your record could affect your life with things like jobs and finance.
“This is a very serious offence which has resulted in motorists being given prison sentences.”
Paul Jeffrey, partnership and innovation manager at West Yorkshire Police, added: “With speed camera footage, dash cam, helmet cam and phone footage the force has more tools to investigate speeding and dangerous driving than ever before and we will always fully investigate in cases where we suspect drivers are trying to avoid taking responsibility for their actions.
“We continue to urge anyone who has footage of traffic offences or dangerous driving to submit it to our Safer Roads Submissions portal.”