Man jailed after stealing cab and crashing into two vehicles

Alcoholic and aggressive passenger causes chaos

A man has been jailed after stealing a cab and crashing it into two other vehicles.

35 year old Graham Whitehead of Hazel Drive, Chickenley, Dewsbury, stole the vehicle after being picked up on 16 November 2018.

Leeds Crown Court heard that Whitehead, who is an alcoholic, was drunk and arguing with a woman when the cab arrived to pick him up from The Crown Pub on Leeds Road. 

David Mackay, prosecuting, told the court that during the journey, Whitehead punched the dashboard in the cab and as the driver got to Maple Road in Chickenley, the defendant told the cabbie that he was not getting paid and ordered him to give him his money. The cabbie then got out of his car and Whitehead slid across to the driver’s seat and stole the car. Whitehead subsequently crashed into a woman's car in Soothill Lane in Batley, before smashing into a parked taxi, and he was subsequently arrested.

The court heard that Whitehead then became aggressive towards the officers dealing with him. He also refused to provide a specimen or blood for analysis.

Whitehead, who according to The Examiner, has 43 previous convictions for 67 offences, pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicle taking, dangerous driving, driving without a licence, driving without insurance and failing to provide a specimen, received a 16 month jail term and was disqualified from driving for three years and eight months. 

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