A pair of brazen road thugs in Rochdale wrote off a police car by brutally ramming into it whist trying to flee in a stolen Land Rover.
The road rage escape took place in Littleborough earlier today when officers from GMP’s Tactical Vehicle Intercept Unit spotted and pursued a stolen Land Rover whilst investigating a spate of 4×4 thefts in the area.
Two men, aged 21 and 22, have been arrested on suspicion of taking a motor vehicle and two counts of Section 18 Assault at the scene.
Chief Inspector Mark Dexter said: “We have been patrolling across the Rochdale and Oldham area due to an increase in the theft of 4x4s.
“Because of this proactive work we have come across a stolen Land Rover and despite the significant efforts the driver went to avoid his collar getting felt, two men have been arrested.
“The successful outcome of this incident, which resulted in no serious injury and two arrests, is down in no small part to the highly-trained, skilled and dedicated officers involved.”
Police immediately spotted the stolen Land Rover and followed the car for some time before it attempted to drive off.
During the pursuit, crooks repeatedly attempted to ram the unmarked Audi S3 in an attempt to getaway.
As well as writing off the police Audi, the thieves damaged a Renault van belonging to a member of the public before abandoning the Land Rover on Church Street, Littleborough.
Chief inspector Dexter said: “Officers in the TVIU are pursuit trained to the highest level and also adept at identifying stolen cars and hotspot areas where they are being utilised.
“It also shows that we will utilise the resources we have to tackle areas where we identify a pattern of crime or offending, such as the theft of 4x4s in this case.”
