A disqualified driver from Swindon has been handed a 21-week jail sentence after a reckless incident involving a police officer.
The event unfolded on the morning of October 7 at the Apple Green Petrol Station on Great Western Way when an officer, who was attending a separate incident, approached a suspicious vehicle. The driver of the vehicle, later identified as David Watkins-Rudman, was suspected to be driving without a valid license.
In a shocking turn of events, upon spotting the approaching officer, the driver reversed the vehicle at high speed, narrowly avoiding a collision with the law enforcement officer. The incident left the officer in a state of panic, fearing for his life, as he believed the driver was deliberately attempting to strike him with the car to make his escape.
Following the incident, Watkins-Rudman fled the scene in a silver Audi TT, sparking a search for his whereabouts. His evasion tactics, however, came to an end when he was discovered sleeping in his vehicle in the early hours of Christmas Day.
As a result, Watkins-Rudman, 37, of Beech Avenue, found himself facing charges of driving while disqualified and assaulting an emergency worker. On December 28, he appeared before Swindon Magistrates Court, where he entered guilty pleas to both charges.
In a victim impact statement, the shaken officer recounted the traumatic experience, stating, “The incident caused me to hold my breath from the panic that came over me, thinking that I couldn’t believe that this person was deliberately trying to hit me with the car, in a bid to get away. I’ve never had anyone drive at me before. I honestly thought that I was going to get hit by the car … I honestly believe that he was trying to physically run me over.”
As a result of his actions, Watkins-Rudman received a 21-week prison sentence, a disqualification from driving for three years and ten months, along with an order to pay £85 in costs and a £154 surcharge.
PC Matthew Coates, the investigator on the case, expressed his satisfaction with the court’s decision, saying, “Our officers are out on patrol on the roads of Wiltshire day and night to keep people safe and apprehend drivers who pose a risk to other road users. It is completely unacceptable when police officers are assaulted while carrying out these public duties, and I am pleased to see the courts acknowledging this and ensuring these offenders are taken off our streets.”
