Police pursuit ends when driver ran out of fuel
Thomas Gillett has been sentenced to 36 weeks in prison
A police pursuit through Ely ended in a dramatic — and somewhat anticlimactic — fashion when the fleeing driver ran out of fuel.
Thomas Gillett, 38, of Cowslip Drive, Little Thetford, was behind the wheel of a black Vauxhall Zafira on the morning of 2 July last year when police signalled for him to stop on Angel Drove, just before 9am.
Instead of pulling over, Gillett accelerated away, sparking a five-minute chase during which he reached speeds of up to 80mph. He drove on the wrong side of the road, overtook on a blind bridge, and even mounted a pavement to avoid a head-on collision with a bus — losing a wing mirror in the process.
The pursuit came to an abrupt halt on Branch Bank when Gillett’s vehicle slowed to a stop — having run out of fuel. He told officers at the scene that he fled because he knew he was driving without insurance.
On Monday (14 July), Gillett appeared at Cambridge Magistrates’ Court, where he was sentenced to 36 weeks in prison, suspended for two years, after pleading guilty to dangerous driving and failing to surrender to police bail.
He was also banned from driving for a year and must complete an extended re-test before regaining his licence.
PC Sam Thompson of the Rural Crime Action Team said: “Gillett made a conscious decision to ignore the rules of the road and engage in a police chase. With the speed and manner of his driving he put the lives of other road users at risk.”