A teenager who led police on a high-speed car chase has been spared a custodial sentence – despite a sheriff branding his driving “utterly reckless”.
Dylan Leisk raced through the streets of Aberdeen in the pouring rain as he tried to get away from officers who were following him.
The 18-year-old, whose provisional licence had expired, hit speeds of up to 80mph on the city’s Parkway – before exceeding 100mph on the busy A90 Aberdeen-Ellon road.
At one point, Leisk’s driving was so dangerous, traffic police had to stop following him because they feared for their own safety.
And the teen was only caught after officers used a stinger to deflate his tyres as he headed back into the city at around 1am on August 1.
Leisk, who was previously banned from driving in January last year, blamed his “scandalous” actions on his peer group, who he claimed pressurised him into taking the car out for a late night spin.
Leisk admitted three offences when he appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court from custody earlier last month – driving dangerously without being the holder of a full licence and without insurance.
Yesterday, he narrowly avoided being given a custodial sentence when Sheriff Christopher Shead decided to give him “one last chance” after warning him he could have killed someone.
Last night, Margaret Dekker, secretary of the Scottish Campaign Against Irresponsible Driving (SCID), said the sentence was “fairly light” and sent out the wrong message to young boy racers.
Fiscal depute Stephanie Ross told the court officers noticed Leisk driving his Volkswagen Golf at “excessive speeds” on the Parkway before overtaking another car while crossing solid white lines.
She said he then continued to drive in “conditions of reduced visibility” and at speeds of up to 100mph on the dual carriageway out of Aberdeen before heading towards Balmedie.
At that point, police officers were told to stand down due to the “level of danger” they considered the public to be in.
They placed a stinger on the road which deflated the VW’s tyres as Leisk drove back into Aberdeen 15 minutes later.
Ms Ross said: “The spike tyre deflation system was successfully deployed and the tyres were punctured, but the vehicle continued to travel and police officers eventually caught up with the vehicle.
“Parts of the tyres were disintegrating and breaking off before the accused was seen to brake sharply. When officers reached him Leisk was found in the driver’s seat and he admitted being the driver.
“The driving was captured by CCTV on the police vehicle.”
The court heard Leisk has a previous conviction for driving when he was not old enough to hold a licence and he was also found in a stolen car in April 2012.
Representing the teenager, who is a known associate of notorious car thief Liam Smith, solicitor Graeme Murray said his client had “fallen in with a bad crowd” who had persuaded him to take the car – knowing he did not have a licence.
Smith, and another one of Leisk’s associates Blair Thomson, were both sentenced to detention earlier this year for their part in a supercar heist which involved motors worth almost £500,000.
Mr Murray said that the dangerous driving happened when he saw police following him and “panicked”.
Sheriff Shead said his driving had been “scandalous” and “utterly reckless”.
He said: “This had the potential to end up as a fatality. This is a serious offence. It could have destroyed lives.”
The sheriff ordered Leisk, of 6 Bannerman Place, Aberdeen, to carry out 225 hours of unpaid work within the next six months. He was also banned from driving for two years.