A BOLTON man has been jailed after leading police on a high speed car chase that only ended when he crashed his BMW down an embankment.

Bolton Crown Court heard how on July 12 last year, James Mossman was spotted by officers in an unmarked car driving a BMW convertible on the M62 at around 8.30pm.

James Preece, prosecuting, said the car was being driven at speed and the exhaust pipe was emitting a lot of smoke.

He told the court the officers then decided to follow the car into the car park of The Grapes pub in Radcliffe.

But as the officers approached, the car accelerated away down an alley way and a pursuit began.

Mr Preece said Mossman, 28, of Sundridge Close, drove through red lights and ignored give way markings.

He reached speeds of 60mph along residential roads before hitting a top speed of around 90mph on Market Street in Farnworth.

As he turned into Smiths Road at high speed, Mossman lost control of the vehicle, colliding with a central island, resulting in the car ending up on its roof down an embankment.

Officers found Mossman, who has nine convictions for 16 offences, as he attempted to hide by climbing a tree.

He was on bail for other driving offences at the time.

Rebecca Caulfield, defending, said Mossman, who pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and driving without insurance or a valid licence, could not provide a good reason why he didn’t stop.

She said he had two children, aged three and one, and had been working as a driver for a kitchen fitter.

“He wants to move on with his life and appears to have calmed down significantly in the last six months,” she said.

Sentencing Mossman to 12 months in prison, Judge Graeme Smith, said: “For whatever reason we see almost every day in these courts, young men who have driven cars dangerously.

“This is a particularly bad example when there were a lot of people and vehicles around and the risk was very high.”

Mossman was also banned from driving for 28 months.