Three Held Following Police Pursuit

Three people are in custody after a dramatic and lengthy police pursuit across north London, Herts and Essex following a smash and grab burglary.

At around 2am this morning a black Ford Ka pulled up outside Waitrose in High Road, Whetstone N20.

One suspect got out and used a bin to smash the entrance doors before they went inside and stole bottles of whiskey, worth around £1,000.

The car again pulled up outside the supermarket and a further suspect got out and helped load the alcohol into the vehicle.

The incident was captured on CCTV and enquiries through local CCTV led to police tracing the vehicle less than 10 minutes later to Bell View Road.

It failed to stop for officers and a pursuit began that lasted one-and-a-half hours and involved additional officers from traffic units, Essex police and the Met helicopter.

The car travelled at speed - hitting 80mph in a 40mph zone - through areas including Barnet, Potters Bar, the A10 at Enfield and onto the A12 where it drove on the wrong side of the carriageway, causing other vehicles to swerve to avoid head-on collisions.

A stinger eventually brought the vehicle to a halt by puncturing all four of its tyres on the A13 near Canvey Island in Essex. Two men, aged 32 and 23, plus a 22-year-old woman were arrested on suspicion of burglary and dangerous driving.

One was further arrested on suspicion of separate matters of robbery and burglary and another was also arrested for the separate robbery matter.

They remain in custody at Basildon police station at this stage.

Investigating officer Detective Constable Damon Cotter, of Barnet police, said: "This is an excellent example of great police team work. The suspects thought they'd got away with their crime but enquiries quickly traced their vehicle and then officers began a determined pursuit to ensure the perpetrators were caught.

"They showed utter disregard for the safety of other road users and it is very fortunate there were no collisions in the circumstances."

(GK)