Defendants have escaped from court docks 27 times in two years, despite the MoJ spending nearly £2m on reinforcing docks - with one case at Hove Crown Court reminiscent of a sketch from Benny Hill
By Press Association 2021
Marian Vasilica Dragoi arrives for sentencing at Wood Green Crown Court, London
A teenager in court over a police chase in which he reached speeds of 180mph on his motorbike leapt out of the dock and ran out as he was handed a prison sentence.
Marian Dragoi, 19, jumped red lights, mounted pavements and rode on the wrong side of the hard shoulder on the M1 during the pursuit on May 20 last year, which lasted over 30 minutes and involved a police helicopter.
He was jailed for 46 weeks at Wood Green Crown Court on Thursday for dangerous driving, failing to stop for police, driving a motor vehicle without a licence and driving without insurance – offences he had admitted at a previous hearing.