Jay Price, 35, and Kelly Brown, 32, both of Cavendish Close, Winsford, have admitted attempting to pervert the course of justice after their car was found upside down in a pond. They appeared at Chester Crown Court on Friday, August 28, where Price also pleaded guilty to driving without a licence, failing to report a collision, and driving without due care and attention. The pair have been bailed to appear at the same court for sentencing on October 9.
Crash and emergency response
Cheshire Police received calls about a collision on Bradford Road at around 8am on January 22 after an overturned car was seen in the middle of the pond at the Salt Mine. Emergency services, including several police cars, five fire engines, a fire boat, ambulances and an air ambulance, were deployed to the scene out of concern for potential casualties. However, after searching the vehicle and the pond, it became clear that the occupants had fled the scene.
The car was recovered, and during a search officers discovered several bottles of Budweiser, a mobile phone, a bank card belonging to Brown, and a Montirex jacket containing a bank card belonging to Price. The keys were found in the ignition on a keyring with a house key and a photo of the couple. DVLA checks showed the car was registered to Price.
Evidence and lies exposed
CCTV from a nearby business showed the car spinning uncontrollably on the road at 9.09pm on Wednesday, January 21, before crashing through a fence and into the pond. Police attended the couple's house, where Brown lied, claiming she had been home at the time. A damp Montirex jacket, covered in salt consistent with the pond water, was found drying in the kitchen but was not seized, and Brown later washed it.
Price was arrested after police attended his workplace. He claimed he had sold the car for £1,400 to a man called 'Fletchy' at a local pub on the night of the crash, but had no proof. He also claimed to be watching a football match at a pub, but checks revealed the match was not shown there. Further CCTV showed the pair walking along Bradford Road shortly after the incident and visiting a supermarket 20 minutes before the collision to buy a crate of Budweiser.
Police comment
PC Jack Pilkington of Northwich Local Policing Unit said: “I welcome the fact that Price and Brown have now finally admitted their guilt. Their elaborate scam cost taxpayers thousands of pounds and also resulted in disruption to local residents and businesses.
“Rather than just report the incident at the time of the collision, they purposely chose to attempt to pervert the course of justice and repeatedly lied to officers about what happened on that night.
“However, their plans were clearly doomed from the outset, and as a result of the evidence we gathered they were left with no option but to plead guilty to the charges against them.”
