A SERIAL illegal driver who caused a man to jump out of the way after mounting the pavement to avoid police has been spared jail.

Disqualified driver Aaqib Khan, 27, of Tivoli Place, Little Horton, had taken his mother’s car to get some food on December 21, 2018.

Traffic on Canterbury Avenue was at a crawl at 2.30pm that day when Khan pulled out of the queue and sped up the central hatched area to skip traffic, before “sharply” pulling back in, in front of another vehicle, as he had reached a bollard in the middle of the road.

Prosecutor Peter Adams said a police car was a short distance behind Khan when he performed the dangerous manoeuvre in his mother’s white Volkswagen Golf, and put on its lights to follow him.

Mr Adams told Bradford Crown Court Khan then drove across a pedestrian crossing before pulling onto the pavement, before pulling back onto the road in Halcyon Way.

While driving up the pavement, Mr Adams said a pedestrian had to jump out of the way to avoid being mowed down.

Khan then sped off up Halcyon Way before his path was blocked by a parked car, which he eventually got past and sped off again.

He then pulled into a parking bay, got out of the car and handed his keys to one of the officers.

Mr Adams said: “Khan said he had been stupid, and had borrowed his mother’s car to go to the shops, and he was running late for work.”

Khan had three previous convictions, for driving while disqualified and with no insurance, and in 2018 for failing to provide a sample of breath, and breached his community order for that offence.

In mitigation, Shufqat Khan said Khan was “aware of the problem this city has with this type of offence” and that his actions could have proved “fatal and catastrophic”.

Khan pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity to the offences.

Judge David Hatton QC said: “This was an alarming piece of driving which put several people in serious danger.

“This was purely fortuitous and down to no skill of yours, and aggravated by the fact you were not entitled to be behind the wheel of a car anyway.

“The fact you needed something to eat and were late for work is no excuse whatsoever.

He was handed an eight month sentence, suspended for two years, for dangerous driving while disqualified and with no insurance, ordered to do 120 hours unpaid work, made subject to a two-month curfew, attend 15 rehabilitation days, and was banned from driving for a further 12 months.