Rhys Kersey jailed after serious crash in Warrior Square, Hastings

Rhys Kersey was pursued by police in the early hours of July 1, 2019, on the A259 at Hastings after patrolling officers spotted his yellow Fiat Punto, which accelerated away from them.

Kersey, who had one passenger in the car, reached speeds of up to 70mph in the 30mph zone.

After making a sudden right turn into Warrior Square, he crashed into a member of public and a brick wall.

The 27-year-old pedestrian and the 22-year-old Hastings woman in the car were both seriously injured and taken to hospital, while Kersey, who is unemployed and of no fixed address, was not injured in the crash.

Enquiries revealed Kersey had already been disqualified from driving for 24 months at South West London Magistrates’ Court in February 2017 for dangerous driving.

He was arrested and charged with driving while disqualified, failing to stop when required by police, driving without insurance and failing to stop after a road traffic collision.

Kersey pleaded guilty to all four offences at Lewes Crown Court on March 2.

He was jailed for five years and seven months and disqualified from driving for four years and six months.

Rhys Kersey was jailed for five years and seven months

Investigating officer, sergeant Pete Swash, of the Sussex roads policing unit, said: “Kersey’s sentence reflects not only the seriousness of his crimes, but also his total disregard for the safety of himself and others.

“With a history of convictions for driving offences, it is clear he has failed to take responsibility for his actions, and that has ultimately landed him in prison.

"He seriously injured two innocent people and it could have been a whole lot worse.

“We will continue to proactively patrol our county’s roads in order to keep everyone safe and to deal robustly with anyone who compromises this.”