A motorist drove at speeds of 47mph in 30 zones while being pursued by police, a court was told.

Haseeb Afzal, of Mellow Close, Bolton, had been driving in Bolton town centre when he was stopped by a police officer in an unmarked car on St George's Road.

On Monday, July 10, Bolton Crown Court heard how he had previously pleaded guilty to offences of dangerous driving, possessing a bladed article and driving without insurance.

Prosecuting, Gavin Howie told how the 26-year-old had been driving a Volvo S40 along the road in the early hours of May 4 this year when the officer stopped him.

Mr Howie said: "He said he was driving a car that he bought very recently."

The car was on a cloned number plate and had no insurance registered to it.

Mr Howie continued: "This was prolonged and persistent dangerous driving, where he reached speeds of 47mph in 30mph zones, a significant excess of the speed limit over a prolonged period."

A video was played in court that showed the full chase between Afzal in the Volvo and the police officer.

It showed Afzal being stopped by the police officer, who flashed their blue lights at him. After a short period which showed the police car stopped at traffic lights, the Volvo drove off down St George's Road.

The police officer followed as the car drove down Marsden Road, Moor Lane and then onto Deane Road, before driving around a housing estate, with many of the streets having parked cars on either side and speed bumps.

The Volvo could then be seen driving back onto Deane Road, before the defendant stopped and abandoned the car with a large object in his hand.

Mr Howie added: "An officer saw he was carrying something large in his right hand, he thought it was a weapon.

"Police then found him hiding under a Mercedes."

The officers tried to pull Afzal out, to which he struggled. He was eventually removed from underneath the vehicle and arrested.

Mr Howie said: "The item was found to be a machete, which was over two feet in length."

Defending, Jennifer Devans-Tamakloe said: "The defendant says that the weapon was found in the car that he had recently purchased. 

"He was driving and realised one of the back tyres was low, so he opened the boot to find the tyre where it should be. 

"Underneath it, he found a package, a knife wrapped up. He took the knife into the vehicle." 

He was reportedly going to take it to the tip on May 4, but was stopped by the police before he could. 

She added: "He accepts that he should have handed it (the machete) into the police.

"He did not have the confidence in taking it to the police, that he would have been believed." 

Ms Devans-Tamakloe added that Afzal has a wife, two daughters with autism and a son that is looked after by his parents.

She added that he is the sole breadwinner in his household, with his wife being a homemaker, so the lives of her and her children would be affected significantly if he were to be imprisoned.

She also pointed out that credit should be given for the defendant's guilty pleas to the offences.

Concluding, Judge Tom Gilbart said: "When police asked you to show proof of your insurance, you drove off.

"You drove through four red traffic lights, you drove around an area of residential housing.

"You drove through junctions without giving way or checking if you could turn."

He acknowledged that immediate custody would have a 'significant impact' on Afzal's children and partner.

He added: "I am satisfied, just, that there is a realistic prospect of rehabilitation."

Judge Gilbart gave Afzal a suspended sentence of 11 months, as well as a four-year driving ban, 20 days of rehabilitation requirement and 200 hours of unpaid work.