Tonight's Channel 5 Police Interceptors featuring Nottinghamshire sees drink-driver take officers on 120mph cross-border pursuit

A drink-driver took officers on a 120mph cross-border pursuit and rammed a police car in a dramatic incident featured on tonight’s episode of Police Interceptors.

Specially-trained Nottinghamshire officers were called in to assist after a man was spotted driving erratically near the Watchorn Island, Alfreton, Derbyshire. The driver refused to pull over and drove off at high speed along the A38.

He then took a swift exit onto the B600 and raced through Somercotes and into Nottinghamshire, hurtling through Selston and Underwood at speed before joining the northbound M1 at junction 27.

Realising the risks the driver was taking, more units from Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire joined the chase and attempted to box the Seat Leon in.

The pursuit was brought to a halt after he crashed into a wall at the junction of Rosemary Street and Chesterfield Road, Mansfield. He then reversed into a Nottinghamshire armed response vehicle causing nearly £4,000-worth of damage. There were no injuries to the officers.

The man was arrested at the scene and provided a positive roadside breath test.

Armed response Sergeant James Carrington, of Nottinghamshire Police, helped to manage the tactical pursuit.

He said: “We first got involved after our Derbyshire roads policing colleagues shouted up on the regional channel we use whenever support is needed.

“As we had specially-trained tactical pursuit officers available, we picked up the information, deployed a team who could help and we all swiftly dropped in behind as the pursuit headed onto the M1 and into Nottinghamshire.

“We had heard the driver was taking some significant risks and so it was really important to be on the car’s tail as soon as we could. Our priority is always to keep the public and other road users safe, and as such we needed to stop it as soon as we could.”

In custody, Asam Hussain, 28, of no fixed address, blew a reading of 76mg of alcohol in 100ml of breath. The legal limit is 35.

Hussain was also found to be disqualified from driving and was eventually charged with dangerous driving, driving while disqualified, driving without insurance, failing to stop for police and drink-driving.

He appeared at Nottingham Crown Court where he pleaded guilty to all charges. He was sentenced to ten months in prison and disqualified from driving for five years and five months.

Sergeant Carrington added: “We were pleased we could support our colleagues in Derbyshire, and despite one of our armed response vehicles suffering damage in the process, it was a relief to be able to bring this long and dangerous pursuit to an end in Mansfield.

“We will absolutely investigate and work together with our neighbouring forces when required as we did in this case, to ensure the safety of everyone on the road and those who break the law are brought to justice, this kind of driving puts lives at risk.

“I am pleased to hear the driver got a custodial sentence and we hope that when the public watch this on Police Interceptors they get a real sense of how seriously we take this and all the different elements we have to manage during a cross border pursuit.”

Meanwhile, also in tonight's episode, the knife crime team are led to a cannabis grow after cops stop a driver with drugs in his boot. The roads team also sniff out a drug driver.

All this and more on tonight’s Police Interceptors on Channel 5 at 8pm.