Man who "led police up the garden path" is jailed

A MAN who pretended he had been the driver of a car which was involved in a crash has been jailed for six months.

Brian Chadderton turned up at Stevenage Police station late at night claiming he had been behind the wheel of his car.

It was a lie, Luton Crown Court heard today (Tuesday) - the real driver had been a female member of his family.

As a result, Chadderton, 46, of Paddocks Close, Stevenage found himself charged with perverting the course of justice.

Ruth Field, prosecuting, said that during the evening of September 20 last year the defendant's Ford Fiesta was involved in an accident with a parked car in Walkern Road, Stevenage.

Witnesses to the collision saw only one female in the Fiesta who after getting out of the car was unsteady on her feet.

The court was told the woman didn't remain at the scene but made off on foot.

The same evening, said Miss Field, the defendant turned up at the police station claiming he had left the scene of an accident earlier.

He had clearly been drinking, said the prosecutor, and was arrested.

However, it was around this time that information was coming in that the driver of the car involved in the crash had plainly been a woman.

Asked if he had been lying to protect someone who was the real driver, he replied: "Look, I don't give a s..t, that's for you to work out."

The court was told that at an earlier hearing the defendant had pleaded guilty to the offence of perverting the course of justice.

Judge Geoffrey Burke was told Chadderton had a total of 24 previous convictions, the bulk if which took place in his teens.

However, since 2001 he had been convicted of a number of offences including two for driving with excess alcohol.

Sally Jackson, defending, said Chadderton was now determined to tackle a drink problem.

Passing sentence, the judge told Chadderton he had led police "up the garden path by telling a load of lies" in order to protect someone in his family.