Caught on video: New police car rammed by truck driver in Stourbridge

Two officers were injured when Chad Harrison rammed his pick-up into the BMW X5 as they tried to pull him over.

He went on to hit eight other vehicles before eventually being caught with the help of a thermal imaging camera from a police helicopter.

Patrol units were in the Stourbridge area on the evening of April 18 searching for a reported stolen vehicle when they spotted Harrison in the recovery truck.

Audio from in-car cameras capture a tongue-in-cheek discussion between the motorway officers saying they hoped disqualified driver Harrison wouldn't shunt their high-spec 13-plate BMW X5, which had been delivered just days earlier and had only 400 miles on the clock.

However, just moments after Harrison stopped on a single-track lane near the A449 in Stourbridge he did exactly that, reversing his flat-bed truck into the 4x4 twice before speeding off

Pcs Dal Nijjar and Gareth Phillips pursued him for almost 20 miles until he crashed through the gates of Hunts Mill Nature Reserve off Coopers Bank Road in Dudley.

The West Midlands Police helicopter monitored Harrison's movements as he ran into woodland and staff were able to direct officers to the exact spot he was hiding.

Harrison caused around £5,000 in damage to the X5, and thousands more to other vehicles he later struck during the chase.

Harrison, 27, from Dudley Road in Kingswinford, admitted dangerous driving, driving whilst disqualified, failing to stop for police and damaging eight other vehicles during the pursuit.

And at Wolverhampton Crown Court on July 16 he was jailed for 19 months and handed a seven-year driving ban.

Sgt Robert Leaver, from the Central Motorways Police Group said: "Harrison has an appalling record of driving going back many years; on this occasion his reckless driving in a large commercial vehicle caused near carnage and caused thousands of pounds worth of damage.

"He deliberately drove at a patrol car, injuring the officers, and then led police on a long pursuit during which he strayed onto the wrong side of carriageways and struck at least eight other vehicles. The truck was in a poor condition and several of the cars were damaged after being struck by one of the truck's stabiliser booms which protruded out from its side.

"The public need protecting from people who drive in this manner and put other road users in danger; he's rightly been jailed and should he be tempted to take to the roads at any stage over the next seven years he's likely to find himself back behind bars."