Banned Wellingborough driver caught topless in garden after high speed police chase

A disqualified driver took a car and drove at speeds as fast as 70mph through Wellingborough streets, a court heard yesterday (January 10).

Joshua Punter pleaded guilty to four charges when he appeared before magistrates in Northampton, where they heard that he had originally been the driver of the car.

The 29-year-old had denied being the driver that had been spotted by officers in Wellingborough town centre, but changed his plea.

After a high-speed chase in the early hours of June 22, 2021, Punter had driven the stolen Nissan Qashqai down one-way streets the wrong way and onto a grassed area.

Punter pleaded guilty from HMP Peterborough via video link.

The court heard that when Punter was spotted driving by police officers in Brickhill Road he had turned off the road 'at speed'.

Punter continued to try to evade the officers by going through a no entry sign and speeding through narrow streets.

Passing up Hardwick Road, he forced other cars to stop to avoid a crash, straddled speed humps and was travelling at up to 70mph in 30mph zones.

The car was then seen in Wordsworth Road where he braked heavily and mounted the pavement, driving on to Grasmere Green from there he drove back to Shelley Road.

Officers saw him stop the car, get out and run away, dropping his mobile phone as he escaped.

When the police officers caught up with him, they heard shouting. They discovered he had been 'garden hopping' to avoid being caught but had disturbed the owner when he jumped into a man's garden. He had told the man to be quiet.

In the statement read out in court he had told police: "All my stuff's in the rear garden - can you get my clothes?"

He had removed his clothes and was topless.

Mitigating, Chris Bennett said: "He accepts that his driving was poor, I would ask him to be given full credit - he has pleaded guilty. No injuries were caused. There was a collision to the kerbs, that was the only damage.

"He is a young man. ADHD causes him to be impulsive."

Punter pleaded guilty to driving without insurance, driving whilst disqualified and driving a vehicle dangerously and was committed to Northampton Crown Court for sentencing on February 4.

Magistrates remanded him in custody until then.