A DANGER driver who led police on a high-speed chase through busy streets just before Christmas was last night (August 11) behind bars.

Amer Mohammed raced at up to 70mph in 30mph zones, tailgated other cars and forced vehicles to stop or swerve out of the way.

Teesside Crown Court heard it was "only by good luck and not good management" nobody was badly hurt or killed.

The 25-year-old claimed after his arrest he had not seen the police following him with flashing lights on December 23, 2012.

The two-mile pursuit started in Thornaby, near Stockton, and ended in Billingham, and at one point Amer drove on the A19.

Prosecutor Yvonne Taylor said police had to withdraw from the chase at one stage as it was unsafe for them to continue.

Amer was jailed for three months after admitting dangerous driving, and had three months added for affray last July.

The court heard he and his brother Shakeel Mohammed, 28, went to an organised fight after a row with another man.

The elder brother brandished a hammer while their foe - who fled over fences and through hedges - had a cricket bat.

Shakeel Mohammed also admitted affray and was given a three-month suspended jail term with 100 hours of unpaid work.

The judge said the pair, both of Lundy Court, Ingleby Barwick, near Stockton, had in the past shown a disregard for authority.

Angus MacDonald, who represented both, said they had since started working for their father and had stayed out of trouble.

Recorder Christopher Knox, who also banned Amer Mohammed from the roads for 18 months, told him: "This is a bad case in which danger was caused to members of the public, and that in itself means a prison sentence."