Drug dealer in stolen car jailed after trying to evade police in chase through Cambridge

A drug dealer who twice tried to evade chasing police officers in separate counties has been jailed for five years.

Traffic police in Cambridge first spotted Sokrat Vata, 27, as he was driving a stolen Toyota RAV4 through the city on 30 April.

They had been alerted to the fact he had stolen the car, but when they tried to speak to him in Catherine Street he sped away after driving up a pavement.

Vata paused to drop off a passenger before continuing to Clara Rackham street where he ran off after throwing a bundle of cocaine into a bush.

Police gave chase on foot and body cam footage captures the moment the breathless officers cornered Vata in a back garden.

The suspect was found to have £560 cash in his pockets and tested positive for drug driving.

In a separate incident in Kent on 13 April, Vata flipped the cloned vehicle he was driving after failing to stop for police on the A20 at East Malling.

Vata was not caught and arrested at the time but several bags of cocaine and number plates were recovered from the vehicle.

At Cambridge Crown Court, Vata, of no fixed address, was sentenced to five years in prison after previously admitting two counts of possession with intent to supply class A drugs, two counts of dangerous driving, possession of cannabis and drug driving.

His Honour Judge Grey described seeing "a parade of misery pass through the court caused by drugs" every week.

He said drug addiction leaves a "trail of damage" including "huge proportion of burglaries, robberies and thefts".

Finally, he went on to say how drug dealing "directly leads to significant amounts of serious violence, particularly knife crime.”

Det Con Louise Trippett said: “Vata was determined to do all he could to evade police that day.

"Unfortunately for him, our officers were right behind him all the way and were not prepared to let him get away."

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