A MAN who reached 90mph in a bid to shake off a police car crashed his vehicle before abandoning it – and then hid in a cemetery.

Phillip Anthony Delaney, 23, tried to change his appearance by throwing his cap and his jumper into a wheelie bin.

But his clothing was recovered and his DNA were found on them and yesterday he was jailed after he changed his plea and admitted dangerous driving on March 19 at Connah’s Quay.

Mold Crown Court heard how he took a roundabout at 70mph and then sped along Kelsterton Road at 50mph as students were leaving the premises and buses were picking up passengers.

He caused a crash before abandoning his car and running off on foot – but he was tracked by the police helicopter.

Delaney, who had been living at the Ruthin Road caravan site at Wrexham, was jailed for a year to run consecutively to a prison sentence he is already serving.

Judge Hale imposed a two-year driving ban to start when he is released from prison and he was ordered to take an extended driving test.

CCTV footage taken from the pursuing police car and from the Flintshire Council CCTV system which captured the defendant’s driving was played to the judge.

Judge Hale told him: “This was a disgraceful piece of deliberate dangerous driving.

“You were anxious to get away from the police and gave no thought to the risks or what would happen if anyone crossed the road.”

The judge said it all happened at 3.45pm when children and young people were leaving school.

There had been a collision right at the end in his desperation to abandon his car and get away.

Judge Hale ordered the forfeiture and destruction of the car.

Jayne La Grua, prosecuting, said Delaney was chased by police between Flint and Connah’s Quay. His speed was estimated at 90mph and the police car reached 100mph to try to catch up.

Other vehicles had to take evasive action as he took a roundabout at 70mph, overtook other vehicles including buses in Kelsterton Road at speed and turned into Golfyn Lane.

There he accelerated past another vehicle but then forced that vehicle to turn left sharply and go onto the verge as he overtook it – but then swerved in front of it as he turned left into York Road where the car was abandoned and he fled.

At the time his driving licence would have been revoked and he would not have been insured.

Delaney, she said, had previous convictions for mainly burglary and was currently serving an 18 month prison sentence.

A charge of going equipped to steal with gloves and screwdrivers, which he denied, was dropped yesterday.

Earlier, Delaney had pleaded not guilty to dangerous driving and said he would seek to have the charge dismissed.

Jade Tufail, defending, said his client had a change of heart, pleaded guilty and was remorseful for what he had done.

He said Delaney wanted to settle down, had a wife and a young child and accepted it had been “an abysmal piece of driving”.

There had been a four-year gap in his offending but he had returned to the Ruthin Road caravan site and fell in with the wrong crowd.