(Image: DURHAM ROADS AND ARMED POLICING)
A banned County Durham driver tried to remove his helmet during a police chase in a bid to make officers abandon the pursuit.
Officers spotted John Bentley riding a motorbike through Ferryhill in May and began a pursuit.
The motorcycle section was called in as 20-year-old Bentley rode on the wrong side of the road into oncoming traffic.
At one point, he started to remove his helmet in the hope officers would abandon the pursuit. They did not.
A St Helen Auckland disqualified driver tried to remove his helmet during a dangerous police chase in a bid to make officers abandon the chase. (Image: DURHAM ROADS AND ARMED POLICING)
The bike was stopped shortly afterwards, with Bentley abandoning his passenger before fleeing on foot.
But PC Simpson identified Bentley and called him, telling him he had been clocked and ordering him to return to the scene.
Bentley, of Fountain Square, St Helen Auckland, was arrested for driving offences.
He pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, driving while disqualified, failing to stop, fraudulently using a registration plate and driving without insurance at Peterlee Magistrates’ Court on September 11.
Bentley received a five-month custodial sentence, suspended for two years.
He was also fined £266, ordered to pay court costs and banned from driving for two years.
He must pass an extended driving test before getting his licence back.
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PC Simpson said: “Bentley seemed to think that his reckless driving would force us to abandon the pursuit, but our first aim is always to protect the public and we won’t stop until dangerous drivers like him are taken off our roads.
“We will continue to keep a close eye on Bentley and criminals like him, so we can put him straight back before the court should he choose to break the law again.”
Bentley had also led police on a motorbike chase around Bishop Auckland in March 2025, after which he admitted to dangerous and drug driving and having no licence or insurance.