THIS is the moment a drug driver reached speeds of 130mph during a ‘terrifying’ police chase.

Richard Bowser, of Percy Street, Bishop Auckland, got into his Bentley Continental GT on Sunday, May 23, having consumed a vast quantity of cocaine.

READ MORE: Drink and drug driver collided with police car during chase

Wanted on suspicion of assault, Bowser was spotted by officers heading towards Tow Law on the A68, where he immediately crossed into the opposite side of the road to overtake traffic and made off from police at speed.

The Northern Echo:

Between Tow Law and Willington, Bowser reached speeds of up to 130mph and was seen to carry out multiple high-risk manoeuvres, darting past traffic and pedestrians at ‘terrifying’ speeds.

One of the pursuing officers later described witnessing a young girl watch in horror as the Bentley careered past her.

Showing no signs of stopping, Bowser was finally slowed down on his way out of Willington when he attempted to take a sharp bend at 90mph, but instead mounted the kerb and collided with a stationary police car that had been waiting ahead of the pursuit at the junction with Oak Avenue.

A police volunteer photographer, who was a passenger in the vehicle, captured the moment that all four of the Bentley’s wheels left the tarmac seconds before impact.

Despite both vehicles suffering massive damage, officers were shocked to see Bowser’s Bentley limp on for another half a mile, still at speeds of up to 90mph and now littering the road with debris, before finally coming to a halt at Low Willington Industrial Estate.

Bowser ran from the vehicle and fled across a nearby field, but was tasered and in handcuffs within seconds, and promptly failed a roadside breath test and drug wipe.

The 44-year-old was later charged with dangerous driving, failing to stop and assault.

Appearing at Durham Crown Court last week, he was convicted of dangerous driving, drink driving and drug driving, and was handed an 18-month prison sentence, disqualified from driving for 45 months, and ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £156.

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