A DRIVER told a court he fled from a policeman because he thought he was a drug dealer.
Matthew Frankland, 25, said that he made the mistake when a plain clothes officer got out of an unmarked police car and challenged him.
Frankland, who was disqualified, drove off in a Vauxhall Cavalier at speed through Marske and New Marske.
He had been spending £50 a day on heroin but was now on methadone and attending a counselling group three days a week, Teesside Crown Court heard.
Judge David Bryant told Frankland: "You are a danger to the public, an aggressive, incompetent driver, and the public are entitled to protection from you."
Frankland, of Muriel Street, Redcar, was jailed for 15 months, disqualified for two years and ordered to pass an extended test before driving again after he admitted dangerous driving on June 12, driving while disqualified and without insurance.
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