Drunk HGV driver who led police on 20-mile chase on M4 is jailed

Andrew Champion was only stopped by a police stinger

A HGV driver has been jailed for 14 months for driving while almost five times the drink-drive limit.

The 44-tonne lorry driven by Andrew Champion, 54, was spotted veering between lanes by police on the M4 near Swindon on 6 May.

At one point it narrowly missed a broken-down car and recovery vehicle on the hard shoulder.

The chase, which lasted for 20 miles, was described by one police officer as "terrifying".

Champion, who ignored signals to pull over while being pursued, was eventually stopped near Reading when Thames Valley Police officers deployed a stinger device.

His breath test reading was 174mg of alcohol in 100ml of breath, the legal limit is 35mg. Officers found a half-empty bottle of whisky next to the driver's seat.

Other drivers warned

PC Jay Clifton from Wiltshire's Road Policing Unit praised the actions of the driver of a Highways Maintenance Vehicle, who used their flashing lights to warn other drivers as the chase, which began at 22:45 BST, unfolded.

"He was effectively creating rolling barrier on the motorway and slowing other members of the public down to stop them from passing and getting anywhere near the lorry.

That person's actions - I've no idea who it is to this day - probably saved lives," said PC Clifton.

"The lorry weaved from the second lane on to the hard shoulder, missing a recovery vehicle and the vehicle being recovered by a couple of feet.

"How he didn't hit them, I don't know. It was terrifying," he added.

'Never seen anything like it'

At Newport Crown Court on 27 September, Champion, of Rhych Avenue, Porthcawl, was sentenced to 14 months in prison and banned from driving for four years and seven months. He was also fined £156 and will have to take an extended retest when his driving ban ends.

PC Clifton said: "I've been on the roads policing unit for 17 years and I've never seen anything like that before.

"Had he [Champion] crossed the carriageway into oncoming vehicles, had he gone into the roadworks and hit a member of the maintenance crew - people could have died"