AN OSWESTRY man who drove into and dented a police car while under the influence of drugs was spared jailed almost three years after the incident.

Gavin Humphreys, 41 and of Alexandra Road, Oswestry, was sentenced to 19 months in prison for dangerous driving and three months for driving while disqualified – to be served consecutively – at Shrewsbury Crown Court on Thursday, July 6.

However, his sentence was suspended for two years by Judge Anthony Lowe.

The court heard that Humphreys, who now has a number of chronic health conditions, including in his heart, escaped from police while under the influence of amphetamines in September, 2020.

West Mercia Police officers were called to the BP Garage at Gledrid services, off the A5, after reports of a man – Humphreys – being drunk while in charge of a Vauxhall Vectra car without a licence or insurance.

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When officers arrived, he had already left the scene but after a search of the road towards Gobowen from St Martins, they found him in the passenger seat of the Vectra.

Judge Lowe was told that officers asked him to leave the vehicle but he refused, leading one officer to spray him with CS gas, to no effect.

Humphreys escaped the scene after he drove dangerously into another arriving police car, leaving it with a big dent in its bonnet.

Officers then located and seized the car in Oswestry in October 2020 while Humphreys was arrested at the same time, with police using force to remove him from a property.

He then gave a ‘no comment’ interview to police before he was charged, eventually pleading guilty to the offences in December 2022.

The court also that Humphreys has 88 previous offences and had not taken the relevant re-test after a driving ban.

In mitigation, Humphreys’s defence highlighted his chronic illnesses and also told the court that this offence was his first since 2016, and that he had not offended since then.

The court heard he had also sought help over drink and drug addiction and that 'he is too old to go gallivanting and drink driving’.

Judge Lowe said: “The number of times you’ve driven while disqualified itself warrants an immediate custodial sentence.

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“This is your third occasion – I’m dealing with someone who has repeatedly driven dangerously and while disqualified.

“It doesn’t matter if it was alcohol or amphetamines – the dangerous driving is aggravated by the fact you were on drugs.”

He added: “You have demonstrated that during that three-year period of time, you have not committed further offences and it is clear that you are taking steps to address your addictions.

“If you stay out of trouble for the next two years then you will have for five years but if you don’t, you go to prison, so I have it both ways.”

He was given 25 rehabilitation activity days and a three-month curfew, to be served at his own property despite a request for it to be served at his mother’s house, lasting from 8pm until 6am