Driver who failed to stop at an accident and for police jailed

A driver who was involved in a collision, and refused to provide the victim with any details before fleeing the scene, has been jailed and banned from Cheshire's roads.

Oliver Boswell appeared at Chester Magistrates’ Court on Friday 12th September, where he was sentenced to three months imprisonment.

Boswell, of Booth Lane in Middlewich, had previously pleaded guilty to two counts of using a motor vehicle without third party insurance and two counts of driving whilst disqualified.

Boswell also pleaded guilty to being the driver of a vehicle that failed to stop after an accident, driving without due care and attention and failing to stop for police.

The court heard that on 11 August, Boswell had been involved in a collision involving another car at a supermarket in Crewe that resulted in damage being caused to the other vehicle and injuring the driver.

Despite being approached by the victim, Boswell ignored them and drove away from the scene.

Luckily however, the victim had recorded his registration number on her phone and captured footage of the driver. This footage would then be submitted to Cheshire Police and an investigation was launched to identify the driver.

Three weeks later, on 1st September, Boswell’s vehicle was stopped on the A556 in Sandiway by a Special Constable.

However, after exchanging only a few words with the officer, Boswell drove off at speed, with this incident being passed to the Roads and Crime Unit for further investigation.

Investigating officers utilised the Constabulary’s facial recognition software to identify Boswell from the body worn video recording provided by the Special Constable who had stopped him in Sandiway, with it then becoming apparent that he was also driving whilst disqualified and without insurance.

Boswell was then circulated as wanted by police, being later located and arrested for both incidents.

During his interview with the investigating officers, the 49-year-old stated no comment to all questions posed to him, yet, given the overwhelming evidence he was charged with seven driving offences and remanded in custody to appear at court.

Alongside his three-month prison sentence, Oliver Boswell has been further disqualified from driving until the year 2036.

Inspector Brad Hughes, of the Constabulary’s Roads and Crime Unit, said:

“This is a great example of the Roads and Crime Unit utilising modern technology to deny offenders the use of our roads.

"Boswell had demonstrated he had no intentions of stopping, either following a collision or for the police, so a clear danger has been removed from the road.

“This case shows how that Cheshire’s dedicated Roads and Crime Unit will use any means necessary in order to get their man and bring justice to those their actions have affected.

“Let this be a warning, if you think you can flout the rules of the road without facing any repercussions, you are sadly mistaken and can expect to see our blue lights in your rearview mirror very soon.”