A FORMER Scots Guard who led police on a high-speed chase through Barrowford and Burnley in a stolen car has been banned from driving.

Burnley Crown Court heard how police spotted a cherry picker being towed by a Land Rover Defender swaying along Gisburn Road, Barrowford, at around 2.40am on July 28.

That vehicle was being driven by father-of-two Ashley John Hardacre, 24, who the court heard had been paid to steal it.

Prosecutor Stephen Parker told the court the officer attempted to pull Hardacre over but he refused to stop.

The court heard the vehicle then went on the M65 roundabout at the junction 10 turn-off, at Gannow, Burnley, ‘too fast for the conditions’ and at one point the rear wheels of the cherry picker left the ground.

Mr Parker said once on the M65 the car was seen keeping to the 70 miles per hour speed limit but ‘erratically’ changing between lanes when there was no need to.

The car turned off the motorway at the Gannow Top junction, went around the roundabout and turned left towards Gannow Lane, the court heard. Mr Parker said: “There is a 30 miles per hour limit there but the vehicle was seen doing well in excess of 50 miles per hour.”

Hardacre reached such speeds in Accrington Road that police feared his vehicle would tip over, but miraculously he managed to maintain control of it, Mr Parker said.

The court heard Hardacre eventually crashed into a wall and attempted to flee the scene but he was quickly caught by a police dog.

Defending Paul Darnborough said: “He had been in work through an agency for a printing company.

“He lost his employment.

“He has two young children and a wife to look after.

“I can only suggest he was vulnerable to the devices and requirements of others.

“He was only going to be paid £200.”

Hardacre, of Lower Tentre in Burnley, pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, driving without insurance and driving without a licence.

He was banned for 12 months, told to take an extended test and complete 200 hours’ community service.

Judge Beverley Lunt said: “You were never going to get away.

“Fortunately nobody was injured in this incident but the householder was in for a nasty shock when they woke up in the morning.”