Yahoo News See police ramming Cramlington danger driver in Seaton Burn after he did 90mph in 30mph zone
This is the dramatic moment police stopped a road menace in his tracks by ramming him after he drove at 90mph in a 30mph zone.
John Saddler left police with little option but to use their car to stop his as he tried to mount a path to get past them. As we reported previously, he has been jailed after sparking two police chases in just over a year.
Now police have released dash cam footage of them stopping him and also pictures of the £14,000 of damage caused to the police car and the damage inflicted to his car.
Newcastle Crown Court heard Saddler had been disqualified from driving in February 2022. On June 28 that year, around 8.30pm, police saw him driving a silver Mercedes on Cowpen Road, in Blyth, Northumberland.
When he noticed officers behind him, he increased his speed and failed to stop for their blue lights and sirens. He drove erratically, overtaking other vehicles at speed before heading into a residential area. He almost lost control on a corner where a young child was playing in a garden which had no fence or wall, and the youngster was left startled and ran back towards the front door of the house.
Due to the danger he posed, police aborted the chase and later went to the home of the registered keeper of the car, Saddler's mother, in Cramlington.
He drove dangerously again on September 7 2023. Police on Chillingham Road, Heaton, around 8pm, became aware of him behind the wheel of a Seat Ibiza and began to follow him. They activated their blue lights and sirens but he accelerated away, doing 80mph in a 30mph zone.
He then headed up the A189 and at the Sandy Lane roundabout, headed towards Weetslade County Park, driving at high speed on the winding road. Police slowed to encourage him to slow to reduce the risk to members of the public.
He continued at up to 80mph, braking heavily for corners and drifting into the wrong lane and maintained a speed of around 80mph through Dudley then headed towards Seaton Burn, reaching more than 90mph in a 30 zone.
He then turned into Patience Avenue and Meadow Drive, a residential area in Seaton Burn, where there were parked cars and a pedestrian. A police car coming the other way blocked the road and expected him to stop but he instead drove onto the path to try to get past.
Due to the risk posed, the officer drove the police car into the Seat, causing extensive damage to both cars, with repairs to the police vehicle costing £14,000. Saddler tried to run off but was chased and detained.
Saddler, 33, of Anstead Close, Cramlington, who has 12 previous convictions, including for stalking and battery, pleaded guilty to two counts of dangerous driving, driving while disqualified and having no insurance. He was jailed for 27 months and will be banned from driving for three years when he is released.
Katie Spence, defending, said: "He is rather disappointed he has found himself in this position."
