Mazyar Azarbonyad, a 20 year old personal trainer, pleaded guilty to the charges of dangerous driving following an incident where he totalled five police vehicles and injured seven officers, necessitating hospital treatment, on the A1 west of Newcastle upon Tyne during the early hours of April 9.

At his sentencing at Newcastle Crown Court on Monday, June 2, Judge Tim Gittins remarked, "It is nothing short of a miracle that no one was more seriously injured or that there were not multiple fatalities."

One officer, the court heard, sustained soft tissue damage to her knee and nerve damage to her back, resulting in a three-day hospital stay, while another required stitches for a facial laceration.

Judge Gittins observed: "It led to regional traffic chaos, misery for many travellers, not to mention the substantial loss of work and study hours for those that were caught up in the aftermath of what you caused."

The court heard that Azarbonyad, who sought refuge in the UK from Iran at age 14, was ferrying passenger Courtney Redfern home in an illegally acquired BMW X5. A vigilant police officer noticed him speeding with defective rear lights.

The prosecution highlighted that Azarbonyad had bought the car on finance even though he only had a provisional licence, lacked insurance, and confessed to officers that he had only invested in three driving lessons.

The judge said: "You should have been nowhere near the driving seat of any vehicle that night, let alone one such as a BMW X5, a large and powerful SUV."

The defendant, who had been stopped for driving without a licence and with no insurance back in 2023, initially pulled over for police but when an officer approached his car on foot he said "nah" and made off at speed, according to his passenger.

Penny Hall, defending, said Azarbonyad claimed Ms Redfern told him she had drugs on her and he "panicked".

Judge Gittins said: "Whether or not you were made aware of the small amount of cannabis in her possession I am satisfied you made a deliberate decision to make off substantially because of your unlawful driving position."

After getting away the first time, Azarbonyad was spotted by police in the area again about 30 minutes later and failed to stop for a second time, nearly losing control on a bend and hitting a kerb as he accelerated onto the A1, where the judge said his speed reached a "hair-raising level" of over 120 mph.

Jolyon Perks, prosecuting, said his passenger told him several times to stop. He said: "In her opinion, she thought he could have killed someone."

When police vehicles moved in to contain the BMW, Azarbonyad braked harshly in the middle of the four-lane carriageway, going from 119 mph to 0mph in an emergency stop and causing a multiple-vehicle pile-up, the court heard.

Mr Perks recounted the incident: "A number of these officers were trapped in vehicles. There were liquids involved, thankfully not petrol. A number of officers were rendered unconscious. It was clearly a very traumatic incident."

Azarbonyad, when questioned, candidly admitted that his driving was "sh*t", yet denied braking abruptly and contended that the police pursuing him were exceeding safe speeds, Mr Perks reported to the court.

Despite his release on bail, Azarbonyad didn't stop driving; he continued trips to his gym workplace before getting nabbed at a petrol station. Ms Hall told the court he had lost his job after police turned up there, but had been offered a job in a hairdressers and hoped to return to the fitness industry.

She said the defendant, of Sylvia Terrace, Stanley, County Durham, travelled to the UK from Iran with his uncle, but lost him during the journey and had never seen him again. After time in immigration centres and foster placements he was granted leave to remain and refugee status, the court heard.

Ms Hall told the court: "Quite frankly, he is terrified at the prospect of going to prison."

Judge Gittins mandated a driving disqualification for the defendant lasting three years and seven months.

No additional punishments emerged for two charges of evading the police and multiple instances of unlicensed or uninsured driving throughout April—all counts which Azarbonyad admitted guilt to.

Superintendent Billy Mulligan, from Northumbria Police, revealed that four out of the seven officers hurt in the crash are still off duty, noting, "It is sheer luck that Mazyar Azarbonyad did not kill anyone that day with his reckless actions."