A stolen van crashed into a parked vehicle and collided with a building near Halls Carpets, Cross Hills, Keighley.

The occupant ran off over the fields, with the police in pursuit yesterday morning.

Ross Bernard, who was at Halls Carpets at the time, said he heard a loud bang.

“At first I thought it was the wind blowing a door shut but when I went to see, there was a white van smashed into the corner of a building.

“It looked like it had also hit a black van, knocking it into a dry stone wall, before losing control and hitting the building.

“I think the driver ditched it and ran off. There were a lot of police officers on the scene very quickly.”

A North Yorkshire police spokesman said: “The van was spotted in Steeton heading towards Eastburn. It crashed just off Kildwick Crossing.

“The occupant ran off and was chased by police, on foot, across a field towards the railway line and the Aire Valley Road.”

A 26-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the incident.