A 20-year-old driver has been sentenced following a police chase which led to seven police officers being hospitalised and a number of cars being damaged and strewn across a busy road.
Mazyar Azarbonyad, 20, has been sentenced to 14 months in a young offenders institution after the horror smash two months ago.
In the early hours of April 9, a pile-up of police cars was seen on the A1 near Denton Burn, Newcastle, after Azarbonyad had been on a first date.
The personal trainer had previously admitted dangerous driving, as well as driving in the aftermath of the crash, despite being given an interim ban.
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The A1 crash caused seven police officers to be hospitalised
PA
The court was told that Azarbonyad and his female passenger had "evaded police" in a BMW X5 SUV before travelling on the A1, where the massive collision took place.
Images released in the aftermath of the crash showed badly damaged, and in some instances, crushed, police cars, with car parts scattered across the road.
The prosecutor reported that one female officer suffered damage to her knee and nerve damage to her back, causing her to be in hospital for three days.
They claimed that a number of officers were rendered unconscious, while a male officer suffered a cut to his head and whiplash.
Mazyar Azarbonyad arrived at Newcastle Crown Court for sentencing this morning
PA
The driver will now be sent to a young offender institution for 14 months, while he will also be banned from driving for three years.
Judge Tim Gittins said: "It's difficult to imagine a worse single offence of dangerous driving without serious injury or death being caused."
The judge noted that the maximum sentence for dangerous driving is two years in prison, before a discount can be applied for a guilty plea.
The court heard that the motorist, who arrived in the UK after fleeing from Iran when he was 14, was pulled over for driving over the speed limit and with defective rear lights.
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Two people were arrested in connection to the crashPAIt also heard that Azarbonyad had purchased the vehicle on finance, despite only having a provisional licence. He did not have insurance and told officers that he had only paid for three driving lessons previously.
When being interviewed by police, Azarbonyad described his driving as "s**t", but denied braking harshly. He also stated that the police had been travelling too fast, prosecutor Jolyon Perks said.
Commenting on the sentencing, Superintendent Billy Mulligan, of Northumbria Police, said: "It is sheer luck that Mazyar Azarbonyad did not kill anyone that day with his reckless actions.
"What should have been a simple stop turned into him driving incredibly dangerously in a bid to get away from officers.
The A1 was closed for most of the day following the incident
PA"He showed absolutely zero regard for the safety of anyone else that morning, and his decision-making behind the wheel put lives at risk."
Mulligan also praised the bravery of the officers involved in the high-speed pursuit, many of whom were injured.
The Superintendent added that four of the seven officers involved in the crash remain off work, while they were "simply doing their job".
He added: "We have a zero-tolerance approach to this type of behaviour, and we are committed to bringing offenders to justice and ensuring our roads as safe as possible."
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