A TEENAGER crashed his flatbed truck through a garden wall after a police pursuit in the early hours of the morning.

The 18-year-old man was arrested and taken into custody after he ploughed his Ford Transit van into a wall at the roundabout on Carmel Road and Staindrop Road, in Darlington, at 3am today.

Police first saw his truck in Winston Road, Staindrop, just before 3am. They became suspicious because of the man's driving but when they went to stop the vehicle, the driver turned the lights off and accelerated away.

The man slowed down again before putting his lights back on and drove towards the A67 where he turned east and headed for Darlington.

Road policing officers joined the chase and tried to end the pursuit in Coniscliffe Road when they deployed a stinger device.

However, the attempt was unsuccessful and the truck sped along Carmel Road sometimes on the wrong side of the carriageway weaving around central traffic islands and at one point heading towards a dog section vehicle which was driving in the opposite direction.

After accelerating once again the driver lost control of the truck at the roundabout with Staindrop Road, where it went straight over and collided heavily with the brick wall and metal fencing of a property in the street. The pursuit had lasted 15 minutes.

The driver ran off but officers were directed towards him by colleagues in the Cleveland police helicopter which located a heat source in a nearby garden.

They found a man, from West Cornforth, hiding in the bushes. He was breathalysed and arrested for drink-driving and failing to stop.

He was taken to Darlington police station where he is being interviewed.

Chief Insp Andy Huddleston, head of the joint Durham and Cleveland specialist operations unit, said: "This was a difficult and potentially dangerous pursuit.

"The officers involved had to work extremely hard to ensure no members of the public were injured and ultimately bring the incident to a safe conclusion."