Man ploughed into pedestrian and drove along with her still attached to car bonnet

A dangerous driver who crashed into two pedestrians in Bristol before driving along with one of them attached to his car's bonnet has been jailed.

Macauley Tomlinson has been jailed for four years for driving at speeds of 80mph through Bristol city centre and 120mph on the M32.

He hit two pedestrians when he ran a red light. One of them was thrown around one metre from the car while the other, a 19-year-old woman, was carried around 100m on his bonnet.

Tomlinson, 26, even tried to swerve the car in a bid to dislodge her as she clung to the windscreen wiper.

The incident began when Avon and Somerset Police were called to a report that a woman had been pulled into a vehicle in Hotwells Road, Bristol, at about 11.50pm on Sunday 30 April.

Instead of stopping for officers, Tomlinson drove his silver Ford Kuga at speed through the city centre.

Despite crashing into the two pedestrians, he carried on driving and crashed into a taxi and a police vehicle on the M32.

Police finally stopped him nine miles away in Keynsham after using a stinger.

Tomlinson then tried to escape on foot but was being tracked by the National Police Air Service helicopter and was quickly detained by officers on the ground.

• Police footage shows chase and moment Tomlinson was arrested

Multiple people seriously injured in the incident

It took two hours for the passenger inside the taxi Tomlinson crashed into to be freed from his vehicle. The 34-year-old is still recovering from serious injuries to his pelvis, hip and wrist following two operations.

His pregnant partner, 36, was also trapped in the car. She continues to suffer back pain.

The driver of the taxi, a 38-year-old man, has whiplash and ongoing back pain.

The 19-year-old woman who was carried on the bonnet fractured her tibia and suffered grazing and bruising, exacerbating a pre-existing medical condition.

Her boyfriend, also 19, was thrown about one metre by the impact. He had cuts and bruises and has been left with a facial scar.

Tomlinson, of Midsomer Norton, was jailed for four years at Bristol Crown Court on Tuesday 31 May. The court gave him credit for an early guilty plea.

Officer in the case PC Andy Smetham said: "Tomlinson was driving at speeds of up to 80mph in on city centre roads busy with pedestrians on a Saturday night. He reached 120mph on the M32.

"He failed to stop even after colliding with two pedestrians and carrying a young woman around 100m on his bonnet. In fact he swerved the car trying to dislodge her as she clung to the windscreen wiper.

"Tomlinson's actions changed everything for five innocent people: a couple who should be preparing for the arrival of their first child, teenagers who should be pursuing their university studies and a man who has lost his livelihood.

"I hope this sentence will enable them to start rebuilding their lives."

The incident was referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) due to the police involvement prior to the collisions. The IOPC directed that there should be a local investigation, which continues.