A BANNED driver led police on a terrifying high-speed chase at speeds of up to 120mph.

Jack Davies was behind the wheel of a Renault Clio hire car with his girlfriend in Hangleton.

An unmarked police car realised Davies had been disqualified and tried to flag him down.

But Davies, 26, who was previously on the Sussex Police ‘most wanted’ list, took off at high speed.

He went at 80mph in a 30mph zone, despite a narrow gap between parked cars on either side of the road in Valley Road.

Officers saw him overtaking and nearly crashing into parked cars as Davies clocked 100mph on the Old Shoreham Road A270.

A black plume of smoke came from the exhaust Davies raced away on a 17-mile pursuit.

He swerved one stinger trap set up by police, but was caught by another, but continued driving onto the A27 after a tyre disintegrated and sparks were flying.

At Hove Crown Court Her Honour Judge Anne Arnold said the builder’s driving was dangerous and jailed him for a year.

Brighton UK 31 May 2013 - Hove Crown Court .Photograph taken by Simon Dack.SD310513C3..

Brighton UK 31 May 2013 - Hove Crown Court .Photograph taken by Simon Dack.SD310513C3..

She also activated a suspended sentence imposed for affray and escaping lawful custody which was imposed by the court last year.

Davies had been wanted over a violent incident in Oxford Street, Brighton, where he was seen chasing a man up the road.

He was stabbed in the neck during the incident, but when under arrest at the Royal Sussex County Hospital he used a cigarette break to escape the police.

Jack Davies, from Seaford, was wanted in connection with an assault in Oxford Street, Brighton on June 11

Jack Davies, from Seaford, was wanted in connection with an assault in Oxford Street, Brighton on June 11

A further ten weeks was added to his jail time for breaching the suspended sentence.

Joe Davidson, prosecuting, said the high-speed chase started at 7.40pm on February 27 in Fox Way, Hangleton.

He said: “The defendant did not appear to slow down at all. He used the bus lane and weaved in and out of traffic, and nearly crashed into parked vehicles.”

His driving at one stage was so dangerous that police were not able to keep up with him safely.

When the car eventually stopped, alcohol cans were found inside. But Davies refused to provide a breath test when suspected of drink-driving.

The Argus: Jack Davies has been jailed for dangerous drivingJack Davies has been jailed for dangerous driving

Dangerous driver Jack Davies has been jailed over a high-speed chase that ended on the A27

Davies, formerly of Alfriston Road, Seaford, admitted dangerous driving, driving without valid insurance, driving while banned, failing to stop and failing to provide a specimen for analysis.

Judge Arnold told Davies: “You not only put your own life at risk, but also that of your passenger, the police trying to stop you, and the public.”

The judge banned Davies from driving for more than three years and told him he must take an extended retest before he is allowed back behind the wheel.

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