A drugged driver crashed into four parked cars, writing three of them off, and an oncoming people carrier as he fled from police, a court has heard. Christopher Williams was thrown from his Mini Cooper in the collision and was found by officers lying in the road while his two passengers were found unconscious in his car. Swansea Crown Court heard the defendant has a long history of committing motoring offences including three for driving with excess alcohol and 10 of driving while disqualified.
Alycia Carpanini, prosecuting, said shortly before 1am on September 8 last year Williams’ Mini was involved in a brief police pursuit in Townhill, Swansea. The court heard that in Gors Avenue the defendant lost control of his car and ploughed into four parked cars and an oncoming Citroen Picasso. The prosecutor said the pursuing officers were on the scene moments after the collision and found Williams lying on the having apparently been “ejected” from his car. Inside the Mini officers found two unconscious passengers. The driver of the Picasso suffered minor injuries and was in a state of shock.
The court heard officers were initially concerned about the medical condition of Williams but he was soon able to undergo a roadside drug swipe which tested positive for cocaine. The defendant was taken to hospital where at 4am a sample of blood was taken for analysis. The results showed he was one and a half times over the legal driving limit for cocaine and more than six times over the limit for benzoylecgonine, a substance formed when the body metabolises cocaine. Williams subsequently answered "no comment" to all questions asked during his interview.
