A man has been jailed after falsely claiming his electric Jaguar would not brake before leading police on a dangerous motorway pursuit across Merseyside in what prosecutors said was an attempt to escape his car finance agreement. The court heard officers believed they were responding to a genuine emergency as the vehicle repeatedly struck police cars before being stopped. Investigators found no fault with the vehicle, and the judge said the defendant sought to profit from a lie that caused widespread disruption and placed lives at risk.
A man from North Wales has been sentenced to four years and three months in prison after being found guilty of fabricating a motorway emergency to evade outstanding vehicle finance payments. Nathan Owen of Prestatyn pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and two counts of fraud after he deliberately created a false crisis, endangering police, road workers, and the public. Prosecutors revealed that Owen contacted emergency services claiming his electric Jaguar was accelerating uncontrollably and that the vehicle’s braking system had failed.
During the incident, he remained at speeds of up to 70 miles per hour while informing the operator that he could not slow the vehicle. Dashcam footage captured during the ordeal shows the car traveling at high speeds before the driver eventually stopped. While Owen claimed his vehicle was experiencing a mechanical malfunction, an investigation later confirmed that no such fault existed. After the event, it was discovered that Owen had contacted his finance company to report the incident and subsequently sought payment from newspapers for his account of the story. In addition to his custodial sentence, he has been banned from driving for five years following his release.
