A man high on cocaine rammed his car into a police vehicle, ripping off its registration plate, during a death-defying chase through Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon.

Craig Harper, 34, reversed his Vauxhall Astra into the police car, causing the two vehicles to become “wedged” together, York Crown Court heard.

He then stepped on the accelerator, moving the car back and forth, which caused the front of the police vehicle to lift up and its registration plate to fly off.

Prosecutor Beatrice Allsop said that Harper — who was 16 times over the specified limit for cocaine — was on bail at the time and banned from driving, having been arrested and charged with dangerous and drug-driving following a previous police chase on New Year’s Eve 2022.

That first chase occurred in the early hours of December 31 when two traffic officers on the A59 Harrogate Road in Knaresborough were radioed by a colleague telling them that a man in a VW Golf had failed to stop for officers in Harrogate.

They drove to the location in Bogs Lane and saw the Volkswagen driving towards them with its light off. Three males were inside the car which sped towards the A59 towards Knaresborough.

Harper went along Bogs Lane.

Harper took a roundabout on the A61 the wrong way then headed towards Ripley, South Stainley and Ripon.

Ms Allsop said the conditions were so wet there were “large areas of standing water” on the road. Harper lost control on one of these pools of water and veered across the centre white lines before careering off the road and “rebounding” back into the carriageway.

Undeterred, he stepped on the gas again, heading towards Ripon at speeds of up to 75mph while cutting corners, driving on the wrong side of the road, speeding round blind bends and at one stage narrowly avoiding an oncoming vehicle.

He then revved up to about 80mph in a restricted speed zone and overtook a line of cars near a bend as he bombed down the A61 and into Ripon.

He sped down Harrogate Road, a 30mph zone, at double the speed limit and into Ripon town centre, shooting through red lights and going the wrong way around a roundabout. He then sped down a one-way street near Ripon Cathedral, shot through red lights again and went down another one-way street in the wrong direction.

He then turned into North Street and sped out of the town and through a village where police tried to box him in.

Harper’s vehicle was brought to a stop next to a grass verge. Officers ran over to the vehicle, but Harper put up a struggle as they tried to restrain him.

He was arrested and taken into custody where a drug-drive test revealed he had a “shockingly high” 800mcg of cocaine per litre of blood, the specified limit being 50mcg.

Ms Allsop said the chase, through towns and villages including Masham, lasted over 20 minutes.

Back causing ‘mayhem’

Harper admitted dangerous and drug driving and was bailed and given an interim motoring ban, but on May 2 he was back out on the roads in a different car but causing the same “mayhem”.

Ms Allsop said two patrol officers in an unmarked police car in Leeds spotted him driving a Vauxhall Astra.

They followed the vehicle after Harper, who had a male passenger, turned onto Lady Pit Lane and then into St Francis Close, where he stopped the car and reversed “at speed” towards the police vehicle. The Astra collided with the front offside of the police car, causing it to “jolt and shake”.

Ms Allsop added:

“The Astra became wedged onto the front of the police vehicle.

“Officers shouted at him, telling him to turn the engine off. They could tell he was under the influence of (substances) as his eyes were glazed and vacant.

“He was trying to free the (Astra) from the police vehicle by going forward and into reverse. At one point, (the Astra) lifted the front end of the police vehicle.

“He managed to free the car by driving forward at speed, causing the wheels to spin. Part of the police registration plate flew off.”

Once free from the police vehicle, Harper turned right into a cul-de-sac and came to a dead end. He put the car into reverse again as officers caught up with him and rammed the Astra into the police vehicle.

The Astra again collided with the front offside of the police car. The officer got out of the vehicle and ran to the driver’s side of the Astra.

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Harper tried to escape but police smashed the driver’s window with a baton, opened the door and tried to drag him out, but the engine was still running and he was still trying to drive away.

They finally took him to ground after using reasonable force and cuffed Harper who refused a roadside breath test. He was taken into custody at a police station in Leeds and again refused to have a toxicology test.

Harper, of Holbeck Close, was charged with dangerous driving, causing over £1,600 of damage to the police vehicle, driving while disqualified and failing to provide a specimen for analysis. He admitted this second set of offences and appeared for sentence via video link yesterday after being remanded in custody.

61 previous convictions

The court heard he had 61 previous convictions for over 100 offences including driving while over the limit for drink and drugs, driving while disqualified and aggravated vehicle-taking. At the time of his latest offences, he was on a community order for assaulting an emergency worker.

Defence barrister Matthew Stewart said the father-of-three started abusing drugs after losing his job and was now on benefits.

Judge Simon Hickey told Harper he had caused “mayhem” on the county’s roads and described his criminal record as “shocking”.

Harper was jailed for two years and two months and slapped with a five-year driving ban.

Two charities that provide much-needed support for local people are benefiting from the £7,000 raised through the Mayor of Ripon’s annual appeal.

Dementia Forward‘s community fundraiser Amy Senior visited Ripon Town Hall on Tuesday to accept a cheque for £3,500 and the same amount will be presented shortly to Harrogate District Mind.

Dementia Forward, which operates throughout North Yorkshire, opened its flagship community hub in 2017 at George Armitage House in Burton Leonard and a further five have followed across the county.

Ms Senior said:

“This donation is greatly appreciated and will support the day services that we provide through our hub club for people affected by dementia.”

Mind’s Harrogate District association was founded in 1973 and over the past 50 years, the charity run by local people, for local people, has been a constant source of support and confidential services including befriending, counselling and outreach.

The Mayor of Ripon, Councillor Sid Hawke, said:

“We are delighted to support two great charities and have been able to do so because of the generosity of the local community and the tremendous work of the appeal committee, which organised and ran fundraising events throughout the last mayoral year.”

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• Chance for Harrogate district community groups to win £3,000
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The Stray Ferret Business Club’s next meeting is an after work drinks event on Thursday, August 31 at The West Park Hotel in Harrogate between 5-7pm. 

The Business Club provides monthly opportunities to network, make new connections and hear local success stories. Get your tickets by clicking or tapping here.

Jaflong restaurant in Ripon has been named as one of the top 10 Bangladeshi restaurants in the country.

The venue on Kirkgate was a finalist in the English Curry Awards 2023 in Birmingham on Monday.

The awards, which were held for the 12th time, celebrate the best curry houses and chefs.

Jaflong was a finalist in the category for Bangladeshi restaurant of the year.  

Owner Salauddin Khan said:

“We are incredibly proud to have our restaurant recognised in these national awards. Thank you to everyone who voted for us and gave us excellent reviews!”

Masham brewery begins online tour bookings

T&R Theakston has begun providing online bookings for tours to its Masham visitor centre – the Black Bull In Paradise.

The tours enable cask ale and beer lovers to go behind the scenes of the near 200-year old brewery and sample its core range of ales.

The brewery’s visitor centre is open from 10.30am to 4.30pm from Monday to Saturday and holds guided one-hour tours throughout the day.

Bookings can be made here.

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Firefighters were called to a field near Ripon last night when a combine harvester caught fire.

Crews from Thirsk and Ripon were called to Baldersby at 8.44pm.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service’s incident report said the combine was alight when the crews arrived.

It added:

“One hose reel jet was used to extinguish the contents and the combine was moved to a hard standing on the farm premises.

“The cause of the fire was overheating within the combine.”

Baldersby is situated between Ripon and Thirsk.

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Ripon Cathedral has argued that retaining a veteran beech tree in proposals for a £6m annexe would be “unfeasible and impractical”.

In a submission to North Yorkshire Council, planning agent Rose Consulting has laid out the reasons why the cathedral feels the tree must be chopped down to make way for a new song school, cafe and toilet facilities on open space called Minster Gardens.

But the felling of 11 trees including the veteran beech has proved to be controversial and a petition protesting the move has now been signed by over 1,000 people.

The proposal is set to be decided by councillors this year and Rose Consulting has offered detailed policy reasons why it says the felling of the much-loved tree meets the strict tests for its removal as set out in Harrogate’s Local Plan.

It argues that given the “exceptional significance” of the cathedral, a case can be made that there is “overwhelming public benefit” in removing the tree, which it says could help secure the future of the historic site for many years to come.

According to the consultants, the council raised concerns about the loss of the beech tree during pre-application advice.

However, the cathedral judged that even if the tree had engineering support, keeping it would not be possible because it would be too near to the new annexe.

It said the construction process would also have a “significant impact” on the roots of the tree, which could potentially kill it.

The council asked if the proposed building could be redesigned to save the tree, with one option involving finding a different location for the storage part of the development.

It also asked if the proposed building could be moved back into the another part of the site called Mason’s Yard.

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But the cathedral has argued this would result in a longer building and the removal of three more trees.

They said this would adversely affect the Grade II listed hotel the Old Deanery as well as views of the cathedral from the car park.

The consultants finally said that the loss of the 11 trees would be compensated for with 21 “substantial” new trees planted round the development as well as more being planted at the nearby Studley Royal.

Jenni Holman who set up the petition to protest against the removal of the trees, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service today that the cathedral is “creating a rift” between themselves and the local community.

Ms Holman said:

“The Dean and Chapter has only referred to ideas which included changing the design of the building and why the Mason’s Yard is not suitable. I can take on board all those factors.

“I would however like to know why a redesigned or rebuilt Cathedral Hall cannot be utilised?  As a two story building, access would be on a level with access through the south door of the cathedral. The toilets would then be a comparable distance from the cathedral as the proposed new build, but having the advantage of not having a road to cross. The Dean has never actually explained, to my knowledge, why this is not possible.

“A second option is within the grounds of the Dean’s residence. The house itself is of a considerable size and there is also a considerable-sized stable block which could be used for his desired storage.

“I would be interested to know why these options have not been mentioned or even considered.”

A flood-hit road near Ripon is expected to reopen to traffic on Friday.

A section of Dishforth Road on Sharow Lane closed on Monday following a burst water main.

The incident caused some of the carriageway to collapse, leaving a hole in the road.

It means motorists travelling to and from Ripon and up to the A1 are having to use alternative routes along Berrygate Lane and New Road at Sharow and through Copt Hewick to avoid the blockage while workmen carry out repair work.

The road on Monday

The road remains closed today but a Yorkshire Water spokesperson said:

“A team was sent to Dishforth Road to complete a repair following a leak.

“The repairs are underway, and we expect the road to be reinstated and opened on Friday.

“We apologise for the inconvenience this has caused we thank customers for their patience.”

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Concrete drainage channels have been installed outside homes in Newby Street in Ripon to prevent flooding during wet weather.

The drainage improvement work, costing £10,000, was completed last week after being authorised as one of five additions to the North Yorkshire highways capital forward programme for structural highways maintenance.

The combined total for the additional works is £340,842 and includes an allocation of £60,000 for work on Hampsthwaite Bridge, which is currently closed and under repair.

The Newby Street work is designed to carry rainwater from downpipes and into drains in the street, preventing a back-up of water on pavements.

Prior to the installation rainwater from downpipes, serving 42 brick-built late-Victorian houses, was released directly onto the pavements.

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The Stray Ferret Business Club’s next meeting is an after work drinks event on Thursday, August 31 at The West Park Hotel in Harrogate between 5-7pm. 

The Business Club provides monthly opportunities to network, make new connections and hear local success stories. Get your tickets by clicking or tapping here.

Ripon-based Econ Engineering has appointed a new operations director.

Gareth Legg, who was most recently managing director at Crossroads Truck & Bus Ltd, will take up the role.

Mr Legg will be tasked with overseeing all four of the company’s depots and ensure the smooth running of departmental activities.

He said:

“I am thrilled to be joining the team at Econ which has a fantastic history, reputation, and product offering. 

“When I first visited it was the attention to detail and obvious pride in everything they do which stood out to me and why this opportunity is so exciting.”

Jonathan Lupton, managing director at Econ Engineering, said: 

“We’re excited to welcome Gareth and look forward to making the most of his skills and experience.

“He has a fantastic CV and is extremely knowledgeable in our field of expertise. He will bring insight and fresh ideas from the outside world, which will ensure we retain our position as the market leader.”

Small business networking session to be held in Harrogate

A networking event aimed at small and medium businesses will be held at Harrogate Convention Centre this month.

Connect Over a Cuppa aims to offer advice, funding opportunities and business ideas to SMEs.

The event is organised by North Yorkshire Council and will be held on August 17 at Co-Lab Harrogate in the convention centre.

More sessions are available on September 21, October 19 and November 16. All start from 9.30am and last for 90 minutes.

For more information on the networking events, visit the Eventbrite page here.

About 70 pheasants were killed today after gas cylinders caught fire near Ripon.

Firefighters from Ripon, Knaresborough and Harrogate rushed to Aldfield, which is about four miles west of Ripon, at 11.36am.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service’s incident report said:

“Crews located five propane gas cylinders well alight that then spread to nearby pheasant sheds.

“Crews extinguished the fire before cooling the cylinders and damping down hotspots.

“The fire resulted in 100% fire damage to all of the cylinders, fire damage to a number of the pheasant sheds and approximately 70 pheasants died.”

Last month more than 32,000 chickens were killed in a fire at commercial premises near Upper Dunsforth in the Harrogate district.

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