Five men have been sentenced after attempting to steal two vehicles in the early hours of the morning near Harrogate.

The men were jailed for a total of 11 years and five months, at York Crown Court today (October 15).

Shane Ali, 33, of Linden Road, Leeds; James Coffey, 48, of New Village Way, Morley; Travis Neagle, 31, of Bradford Road, Batley; Marcus Durant, 31, of East Park Street, Leeds; and Lewis Jackson, 34, of no fixed address, all pleaded guilty at York Crown Court in April to theft of a motor vehicle and burglary. Coffey also pleaded guilty to driving whilst disqualified.

At 4.40am on November 4 last year, police received a call from a member of the public reporting that two vehicles had been stolen from his business at Felliscliffe near Harrogate. An Iveco truck and a Renault Master van had both been taken.

Officers were deployed, and within minutes a roads policing officer spotted the stolen Iveco on the A59 near Blubberhouses. A blue VW Passat was travelling behind it in convoy. The Passat was already linked through police intelligence to suspected burglary activity and was believed to be acting as a “spotter” vehicle.

The vehicles continued along the A59 towards Bolton Abbey, where officers positioned themselves behind both vehicles. As they entered Addingham, the Passat turned left onto Bark Lane.

The Iveco then attempted to reverse into a police vehicle before failing to stop and driving at twice the speed limit. Two occupants jumped out of the vehicle as it rolled forward into a wall.

The VW Passat was boxed in by police, and three occupants were arrested within the vehicle.

Dog hunt

An immediate area search was carried out by police dog Rhun and his handler. Around 100 metres away, Rhun located a man hiding in a bush. The suspect, later identified as Lewis Jackson, attempted to flee and the dog was deployed, resulting in a bite. He was detained shortly afterwards.

Later that morning, at around 9am, residents in Addingham reported a suspicious man in the village covered in mud, particularly on the lower half of his clothing. Recognising a possible link to the earlier incident, residents contacted police.

The man entered a library and attempted to arrange transport. An Uber driver refused to take him due to a booking issue. When a second taxi arrived, members of the public advised the driver not to leave with him. The man became agitated before getting out of the vehicle.

Officers from West Yorkshire Police attended and identified the man as Marcus Durant. He was arrested at 9.35am following coordination with North Yorkshire Police.

The stolen Renault van was recovered later that day and examined for forensic evidence.

You can watch the video of the police dog in action here.