Sheffield thief broke neck crashing stolen Mercedes into tree at over 100mph during police chase on busy roads
He entered the crossroads at “such speed” that the vehicle “left the carriageway”
A Sheffield car thief broke his neck crashing a stolen Mercedes into a tree at over 100 miles an hour while fleeing police on busy residential roads, a court heard.
Bradley Watson, aged 29, had stolen the C220 - whose owner had left it parked on her driveway while on holiday - hours prior to the crash on May 7, 2025.
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He was captured on CCTV approaching the vehicle before driving off - however police were alerted and an area search soon located Watson and the car.
Prosecutor Joseph Bell, describing the pursuit, told Sheffield Crown Court that Watson hit the tree at the crossroads of School Road with Delves Road and Mansfield Road in Kiveton Park - on roads where a 40mph limit applied.
He said: “He made no attempt to swerve or brake - the defendant entered the crossroads at such speed that the vehicle left the carriageway.
“It hit four stationary vehicles before coming to a stop in a tree and laying on its roof.”
Watson had to be pulled out of the car by emergency services and rushed to hospital with a broken neck, said Mr Bell.
The car’s owner was left £2,000 out of pocket by the incident, he added.
Watson, of Weakland Close, Frecheville, had 25 previous offences for 13 convictions, including dangerous driving and driving while banned, the court heard.
He was under curfew when he was jailed, having been locked up in December and released for a similar offence after the crash of May 7 last year in Kiveton Park.
Judge Anthony Dunne, noted it was a “mystery” why Watson had not been sentenced for this matter when he was last jailed adding: “This was a very serious incident - if stood alone it would be an immediate custodial sentence.”
However, he said: “Given the history and that you have now been at liberty for sometime, it would not be right to send you back to prison for an offence committed before the one you were sent to prison for.”
Watson was handed 15 months’ jail suspended for two years and given 180 hours of unpaid work with a two-year driving ban.