A high-flying businessman led police on a high speed chase before smashing into two cars, injuring a woman.

Multi-million pound company director Lewis Kent drove his red Astra "like a maniac" in Dover when he spotted a patrol car's blue lights.

The 31-year-old swung the wrong way around a roundabout, drove on the pavement near pedestrians, and on the wrong side of the road, forcing drivers to swerve to avoid him.

Police estimate Kent reached speeds of up to 60mph in 30mph zones after the pursuit began in Coombe Valley Road.

The £80,000-a-year engineering boss' chase ended when he tried to flank a lorry boxing him in, and smashed into a learner driver mid-lesson and another car.

Officers were alerted to Kent's car on the afternoon of May 15 because it failed to stop days before, Canterbury Crown Court heard.

Judge Rupert Lowe told Kent: "You drove into the path of oncoming vehicles, went the wrong way around a roundabout, and when a lorry appeared you mounted the pavement and made off again.

"Police put the blue lights on - you drove like a maniac and injured someone."

The judge suspended a 10-month prison sentence for a year, telling Kent he avoided jail only because it would cause his partner and child to suffer.

"You drove into the path of oncoming vehicles, went the wrong way around a roundabout.... police put the blue lights on - you drove like a maniac and injured someone" - judge Rupert Lowe

Victim Shelly Willis smashed her head on the side of her car and suffered an arm injury, prosecutor Stacey-Lee Holland told the court.

Two months later she experiences impaired sleep, confidence and finances, the barrister added.

Her car was deemed a write-off.

Mitigating, Mary Jacobson argued Kent's offending was out of character and he's in a stable environment for rehabilitation.

She also emphasised a spell in prison would bring financial and emotional hardship on Kent's immediate family.

Kent, of Melbourne Avenue in Dover, admitted dangerous driving, driving without a license and possession of 3.5 grams of cannabis in police interview.

He was fined £4,000 at £500 a month and ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work.

Kent, who has 15 previous convictions, is also disqualified from driving for 12 months.

Read more: All the latest news from Dover

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