Drug dealer tried to hide in garden after police chase through Cambridge

A drug-dealing driver in a stolen car led police on a chase through Cambridge before throwing his stash of cocaine into a bush. Officers were alerted that the stolen grey Toyota RAV4 was being driven in the city on April 30.

Cambridgeshire Road Policing Unit patrols found the car in Catherine Street but as they went to talk to Sokrat Vata, who was driving the car, he mounted the kerb and sped off. The 27-year-old stopped a short while later to let a passenger out.

He then continued to Clara Rackham Street, where he ran off and threw a bundle of cocaine in a bush. Vata was found hiding in the back garden of one of the houses.

He had £560 in cash in his pockets and officers found number plates in his car. He tested positive for drug driving.

In a separate incident in Kent on April 13, Vata flipped the cloned vehicle he was driving after failing to stop for police on the A20 at East Malling. He was not caught at the time but several bags of cocaine and number plates were found in the vehicle.

At Cambridge Crown Court on Wednesday (September 25), Vata, of no fixed address, was sentenced to five years in prison after previously pleading guilty to two counts of possession with intent to supply class A drugs, two counts of dangerous driving, possession of cannabis and drug driving.

Upon sentencing, His Honor Judge Grey described seeing "a parade of misery pass through the court caused by drugs" every week. He said drug addiction leaves a "trail of damage" including a "huge proportion of burglaries, robberies and thefts".

The judge said drug dealing "directly leads to significant amounts of serious violence, particularly knife crime".

Detective Constable Louise Trippett, who investigated, said: “Vata was determined to do all he could to evade police that day. Unfortunately for him, our officers were right behind him all the way and were not prepared to let him get away. He now has a lengthy prison sentence for which he can use to consider his actions."