He’s now been jailed
A banned driver who sped away from police 80mph in a bid to escape the police and who later did the same again with kids in his car has been jailed. ‘Incredibly reckless’ Christopher Marshall, 40, twice made off from officers as they tried to stop him in Gorton.
In December 2023, a local neighbourhood officer recognised Marshall, who was disqualified, and pulled up behind him. He then drove off and hit speeds of 80mph whilst ‘overtaking traffic, mounting a pavement, and running red lights’, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said.
Officers who were pursuing him discontinued the chase due to the circumstances. However they later tracked him down, arrested and charged him.
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However after being granted court bail, Marshall offended again. In January of last year he was again spotted by a patrol and once again drove off. This time he had two young children in the car, GMP said.
“He mounted a kerb and clipped a member of the public’s car, while also causing an officer to slam their brakes on to avoid being hit” the force said.
Due to the presence of the children they decided not to pursue him, however he was again arrested two days later, and charged.
Marshall, of Lunn Avenue in Abbey Hey, Gorton, pleaded guilty to two counts of dangerous driving, two counts of driving whilst disqualified, and one count of handling stolen goods.
He was this week sentenced to two years and four months in prison at Manchester Crown Court.
In a statement issued after the case, PC Mohammed Ditta, from GMP’s City of Manchester neighbourhood policing team, said: “We see the consequences of dangerous driving every day across the force – from minor scrapes to serious injuries and deaths.
“Marshall’s decision to drive so dangerously while young children were on board was incredibly reckless, and we are fortunate that there were not more serious consequences.
“The local neighbourhood team regularly proactively patrols the areas of Gorton and the surrounding areas, and we are constantly looking to tackle criminality wherever we can find it.”
