He's the driver in England who was caught swearing at speed cameras. Now he's been jailed and banned from the road.
ADVERTISEMENTA driver who swore at speed cameras by raising his middle finger as he passed them has been jailed for eight months.
Timothy Hill made the rude gestures three times as he was snapped by road safety surveillance in north-east England last December.
The 67-year-old had fitted his Range Rover with a device that told him when he was about to pass a camera.
It also jammed the roadside equipment’s laser, preventing police from recording how fast he was travelling.
Officers said when they went to the company director’s house to probe the incident, he threw the jamming device in the river at the back of his residence.
He was later interviewed and admitted fitting the device to his car, according to North Yorkshire Police.
Hill was charged with perverting the course of justice, which he pleaded guilty to when appearing at court.
He was sentenced at Teesside Crown Court on Monday, April 23, and given an eight-month prison sentence.
He was also banned from driving for a year.
The judge who jailed Hill said such actions “strike at the heart” of the justice system and his sentence must act as a deterrent to others, said police.
Constable Andrew Forth, who led the investigation for North Yorkshire Police, said: “If you want to attract our attention, repeatedly gesturing at police camera vans with your middle finger while you’re driving a distinctive car fitted with a laser jammer is an excellent way to do it.
“It’s also an excellent way to end up in prison. As Hill’s case shows, perverting the course of justice is a very serious charge which carries a custodial sentence.
“It’s our job to keep road users safe across all 6,000 miles of North Yorkshire’s roads. Mobile safety camera vans are an important tool to do that – they are proven to reduce collisions and they help save lives.
“Drivers who fit laser jammers may mistakenly feel smug about ‘getting one over’ on the police. But we can tell if motorists are using these devices, and we will always endeavour to bring them to justice.”
