A car thief who caused a three-vehicle crash in Bassetlaw after travelling in the wrong direction on the A1 has been jailed.
A Ford Mondeo was initially spotted by police towing a high-top van in Blyth Road, Worksop, around 6.45pm on 23 February 2025.
Officers observed the two vehicles turning in the road at excessive speed and followed them.
The Mondeo, which was later discovered to have been on false plates, and the van stolen, then stopped and the van was detached before the car sped off.
The Mondeo, with 34-year-old George Buck at the wheel and three other men inside, was driven at speeds of up to 100mph to the A1 near Blyth where it then headed southbound on the northbound carriageway.
It collided with two oncoming vehicles, a Peugeot 208 and a van, a short time later.
The three passengers in the Mondeo suffered serious injuries.
The occupant of the van also suffered serious injuries and the Peugeot driver suffered minor injuries.
The road was closed in both directions overnight while investigations took place.
Buck, of Stockbridge Lane, Bentley, Doncaster, pleaded guilty to theft of a motor vehicle, four counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.
He was sentenced to four years and four months in jail at Nottingham Crown Court on Monday (12 May).
Sergeant Mark Baker, of Nottinghamshire Police’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said:
“Buck’s decision to drive at speed in a bid to evade arrest was both reckless and dangerous.
“His desperate attempts led him to drive in the wrong direction up a busy dual-carriageway, showing absolutely no regard for the safety of anyone else on the road that evening.
“It must have been terrifying for other drivers to see a car hurtling towards them on the wrong side of the carriageway.
“Three occupants of the Mondeo and the driver of the van suffered extremely serious injuries due to the actions of Buck.”
