A man has been banned from the roads for more than four years after he led police on a “shocking” high-speed chase in Aberdeenshire before crashing into a ditch.
Ryan Dalgarno, from Park View, Brechin, appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court yesterday having admitted driving dangerously on the A90 Aberdeen to Dundee road and B967 Inverbervie to Fordoun road on September 20, 2018.
The court heard Dalgarno, 26, had been driving a blue Volvo on the A90 in the northbound lane near Stonehaven, when a police signalled for him to pull over at about 2pm.
He declined to stop and the 26-year-old subsequently led police on a chase along the dual carriageway and nearby roads.
Officers noted he was at one point travelling in the outside lane of the A90 at around 95mph.
The pursuit was abandoned due to concerns by officers it was unsafe, but the blue Volvo was traced just eight minutes later, resting in a ditch.
Officers spotted two men running from the scene in a nearby field and arrested Dalgarno, who did not initially tell the police who had been driving.
Yesterday Sheriff William Summers disqualified Dalgarno from driving for 51 months and ordered him to carry out 180 hours of unpaid work.
He was admonished on a charge of possessing cannabis.
Solicitor David Sutherland said his client had not offended further since the day of the incidents.
Sheriff Summers said the driving had been “shockingly bad” and he was “frankly astonished no-one was injured”.