SIREN WAILS
JOHN THOMSON: This is Police Interceptors.
Get on the ground!
Police Interceptors? The real one? I'm gonna tell my kids.
And you're riding with the pride of Northamptonshire.
TYRES SCREECH
Come on! Ace pursuit drivers...
Contact, contact, contact. NPAS 5-1.
..with air support... Got two out. Stand by.
Come out! ..and a crack dog unit.
If you move, you will get bit.
MAN YELLS
They bring down the bad guys... Police!
I believe you are wanted...
Police with a dog, stand still! ..keep the streets safe...
Put your arms behind your back. I am!
Get on the floor! ..and battle 24/7...
Get down on the floor. ..in the war on crime.
Crash, crash.
On the floor now!
Is what it is, innit? We find them, we lock them up.
SIREN WAILS Coming up...
Think this is a dead end, Cutler.
The disappearing decamp...
SIREN WAILS
..can't hide from the dog.
DOG BARKS Get your hands when we can see 'em.
Get on the floor!
Robbing the wrong place at the wrong time.
And...
..boxing in a seven-tonner.
Oh, you...
It's very early on a Tuesday morning...
..and someone dodgy has woken a household
long before their alarm clock.
We've had a caller report
that he's disturbed some people on foot outside his address.
So we're just in the area, cos it sounds like they've run off,
to see if we can pick up anybody on foot
that's moving around that shouldn't be in the area.
Tarnia and Tommo have eyes peeled
for a group they suspect are in the business of burglary.
It sounds like they've potentially been disturbed
trying to get into a garage.
Your full beams are on, just to remind you.
Oh, yes. Thank you.
There's not much on the road to dazzle at this time,
and any car that is moving is of interest.
Including this Mini.
Did you see how many people were in that car? No.
Let's go round and look.
I thought there was only one, but...
By the time Tommo spins round, the Mini's vanished,
which only adds to their suspicions.
We've lost it.
If we go right here, it might have come out on the estate,
out this way, right there.
There are cars on the main road...
All right, is it one of those?
Er... No.
No, and no. No.
..with no sign of the disappearing Mini they saw a minute ago.
However...
RADIO:
..a nearby Armed Response Vehicle is now behind a Mini.
Oh, my God, don't. That's the one that just went past us. No.
That Mini that went past us...
I think the ARVs have just said they've sighted it going this way.
And if anything were needed to make the car even more interesting,
its registration does the job.
Is a cloned vehicle. Oh.
Six-one, we're trying to make ground on you.
We're Gladstone Road.
Yeah, so, the unmarked vehicle ahead's
got the subject vehicle in sight,
so the plan - they're just discussing tactics -
will be for us to try and get it stopped.
In convoy with the lead ARV,
they're waiting for reinforcements to box the cloned Mini in.
It's testing us now. It is, yeah.
In the meantime,
they suspect the driver's toying with the idea of failing to stop.
Yeah, copy.
So when the Mini pulls up at roadworks,
the lead ARV moves to get in front of it.
Vehicle trying to get out of it.
TYRES SCREECH
Yeah. HORN BEEPS
SIREN WAILS
Oh, and it's off.
A two-car convoy pursues the Mini
out of the roadworks and onto residential streets.
Tommo and Tarnia at the back, a Volvo ARV at the sharp end.
INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER
It's Granville Road.
RADIO CHATTER
This is a dead end. Ah, is it?
Yeah. Think this is a dead end, Cutler.
It looks like the driver plans to bail out.
But not before some dicey off-roading.
Still off-road. He's away on his toes...
..with a pack of cops on his tail.
And somehow, he's vanished again.
TYRES SCREECH
And it's off. SIREN WAILS
JOHN THOMSON: Interceptors are after the driver of a cloned Mini
that failed to stop near the area of a potential burglary.
Think this is a dead end, Cutler.
They've cornered the car, but lost their man.
You weren't that far behind him, really.
He didn't have time to run out of sight, so he must be hiding.
Good news for the heavyweight champion of hide-and-seek...
..who, heralded by an ARV police escort...
..has just arrived.
Enter police dog Peggy...
..who, unlike us mortals...
Not been able to see which way he's gone because of the wall.
..effectively looks straight through bricks and mortar
on account of looking with her nose.
Peggy leads her handler, Sean, straight into a garden.
But there's not much doing here.
Or is there?
PEGGY BARKS
I think that's German shepherd for "game over", Tarnia.
BARKING CONTINUES
SEAN:First garden on the right.
Move, you get bit by the dog. Stay still, fella. Don't move.
Peggy's tracked down a suspect in double-quick time.
Go that side.
Keep your hands where we can see 'em.
Right, you're under arrest, mate. Keep your hands when we can see' em.
Get on the floor. Just get on the floor.
Yeah, we've got him. He isn't playing ball.
YELLS:Get on the floor! Get on the floor. Get your hand out.
And it's unwise to struggle...
SUSPECT:Funny, that's all. Get down!
OFFICER:There's nothing funny about it. You're under arrest.
..because the dog has other modes than track.
You're under arrest for failing...
PEGGY BARKS
Luckily for this guy, he's cuffed before Sean gets Peggy to detain.
You're under arrest on suspicion of being unfit, as well,
to drive through drink or drugs.
What's your name, chap?
Eugene. Eugene.
Right, Eugene, roll on your side. Put your feet out.
You know the drill. There we go, look at that.
Right, you ready? Ready.
Two, one...
Tom, are you all right to help him out a bit?
TOMMO:You take him. I'm gonna grab this.
No messing about, mate.
Set of garden shears here, close to where he was found.
To be fair, it's covered in dew, especially on the handle,
so I think this is just here from the homeowner.
You got anything on you I need to be aware of? No.
Any injuries, anything like that? No.
Peggy found the suspect in under a minute,
yet he's convinced he nearly got away.
She near enough didn't find me.
She was right about half-a-foot next to me.
She was about to walk off. Yeah, all right (!)
Yeah, right, mate (!)
The dog was looking at me and actually went to lick me,
and then it went, "Woof, woof!" Did she?
Seriously, yeah. Oh, right, yeah.
Sure she did (!)
Trust me. I won't, thanks.
And for the record, runaways licked by Peggy often need stitches.
Please don't, dog. Oh!
You wouldn't be smiling then.
Lucky for you... I know.
She didn't, and here we are. I'm just gonna check your ankles.
You been drinking tonight? Nope.
Smoked anything you shouldn't have done? Nope.
What about the crack pipe over there?
No, that's my tobacco pipe.
It's your tobacco pipe, is it? Yep.
He smokes a pipe, apparently, like Sherlock Holmes.
We sure about that? Yeah, positive.
Something else may be positive in a few minutes.
Right, you're gonna be drug-wiped.
Failing to provide a drug wipe will render you being arrested
for failing to provide, and we'll take you to custody.
The driver's twitchy behaviour
suggests he's smoked more than tobacco.
Are you able to stand still? Well, not really, no.
Do you wanna lean against the wall? Yeah.
That'll make it easy for us. Yeah.
There you go. I'll still keep hold of you, just in case.
My trousers are coming down, that's all.
Have you smoked anything in the last five minutes? Say again?
TOMMO REPEATS QUESTION
No. Had any alcohol today, had any drugs today? No.
OK. Stick your tongue out as far as you can.
Keep going, fella. That's it.
Thank you.
It takes eight minutes for the results
of the least surprising drug wipe in history.
DEVICE BEEPS AND BUZZES
Right, buddy. You are being further arrested for suspicion
of driving whilst unfit through cocaine in your system,
cos it's come back as a positive on cocaine.
You might want to have a word with your tobacconist, Sherlock.
I think you should let me go, don't you?
Do you reckon? Yeah, I reckon.
I reckon that'd look good for TV, wouldn't it?
Show the police have got a heart. I'm not sure about that.
I don't think that's what
the general public would expect us to do.
Having declined the chance to let him go
and prove the police have a heart, they send him off to custody.
TARNIA: How are you comfortable like that?
I ain't. These handcuffs hurt an' all, but I'm not one to moan.
I have met Eugene previously,
so I am aware of some of his past.
So, he could have been up to some criminality,
could have just been going for a late-night drive.
However, I imagine he failed to stop for officers
because he is under the influence of drugs,
which, you know, is a crime.
As is doctoring your number plate.
Put some tape over the first zero,
so it's to evade our number plate recognition.
So not a clone after all, but still illegal.
A bit like his tyres.
The cord is showing through the tyre.
Still...
OFFICER:Keep blowing, keep blowing, keep blowing. Stop.
Have a little sit-down.
Wow - zero, zero. Zero, zero.
At least he hasn't been drinking.
THEY LAUGH Course!
Zero!
Does mean we're gonna have to go to the bloods procedure
for the drugs, though. All right.
No further action was taken regarding doctored plates,
failing to stop or any allegations of burglary.
However, after refusing to give a blood sample,
Mr Happy pleaded guilty to failure to provide,
dangerous driving and driving with the cord of a tyre exposed.
The smile was wiped from his face when he was ordered to pay £187,
lost his licence for more than two years
and was sent down for 32 weeks at His Majesty's pleasure.
Yeah, get by.
Interceptors make challenging situations look easy.
Come on!
SIREN WAILS Even at three-figure speeds.
135 mile an hour in this fog is not fun.
But cops aren't born with these skills.
They train within an inch of their lives.
Driving...
MAN YELLS
Taser, Taser! ..firearms work...
MAN YELLS ..dog training.
You name it... Show yourself!
Get him! ..they drill it.
And tonight,
Sean's been on an exercise in a key local training area.
As places to commit crime go, this could be one of the worst.
But no-one's told this mob.
SEAN:Delta-two-five, I've got a theft, Brackmills.
One's legged it,
and in the heartbeat it takes to spring police dog Peggy...
Get out, get out! ..the rest are away in the van.
It's gonna fail to stop. Get in, go.
Sean's clocked a man in a hi-vis in the back of the van,
while two others throw boxes in.
As the dog man stops, hi-vis makes a run for it.
Sean and Peggy move in,
but the stragglers jump aboard the van and take off,
back doors flapping in the night.
Fail to stop.
By the time Sean's got Peggy safely back in the dog van,
they're playing catch-up.
The vehicle's left towards Bedford Road.
I need some more down here.
Five males doing boxes over the fence.
I've got one running into the Brackmills
in yellow hi-vis, four back in the vehicle.
Sean's a master dog handler with 14 years in the unit.
He often works as an instructor in this very area...
I was outnumbered, got back in. ..which, of course...
RADIO:I've got your location, coming to you.
..the whole force knows like its own backyard.
Rookie error, coming to a place where we do our firearms training.
Multiple units are descending...
Was he there doing dog training?
..including Sam at the wheel of an Armed Response Vehicle,
and alongside him...
V-2, we're on the A45. ..Paul Gale.
So, we've got the dog unit that came across it...
another... another dog mobile that's nearby,
us, and then a couple of other ARVs
that are all making towards the scene.
At the scene, there's an update from Sean,
who's kept the runaway van in sight.
Vehicle's Brackmills. It's decamp, decamp.
Liliput Road at the end.
Four have bailed out and done a runner.
The bad guys have a good head start.
Come on. DOG WHINES
But Sean has an advantage of his own.
Wait.
We've gotta cut 'em off.
Somebody get to, like, the Bedford Road side.
I think they've gone over a security fence in.
CCF, Charlie-Charlie-Foxtrot, I can't get in.
The gang may have given them the slip.
They've gone over a really high security fence, mate,
right at the end of Liliput, but towards the Bedford Road.
HE SIGHS HEAVILY
Sean opts to check out the van full of stolen goods.
Yeah, to the right.
But more dog units were training in the area,
including Ash Price and police dog Ebby.
That's where the four went.
If you go back down that road. Yeah. Turn right.
You know the alleyway on the left that goes to the car auction place?
The newcomers can go after the first suspect to leg it.Yeah.
Tall lad, yellow vest with grey tracksuit bottoms.
You might get a track from there, mate. He went into that alleyway.
Ash has gone back that way. Get one down there.
I'm trying to work out if I can get through there with her safely.
Sean would dearly love
to get Peggy after the four who scaled the security gates.
AUTOMATED VOICE: 'You've dialled an incorrect number.
'Thank you for calling...'
But there's no joy opening them up.
See if I can get in down there.
A bit of recceing...
Do you know if...? Do you know if you can get in
any of the compounds down on the right,
or is it just this one? MAN:No.
Just this one? Yeah.
OK, no worries, thank you. ..suggests there's no other way in.
Right. Pegs, I'll try and get you over there.
So it's a 40-kilo clean and jerk for Sean...
DOG WHINES, HE GRUNTS
..some agility work for Peggy... Pegs, head up.
Good girl. Right.
..and they're in.
Find track, where's he gone?
Peggy leads them straight to a fence at the far end.
I've come through the compound,
and I've got to where they've got out, but I can't get out,
it's too dangerous for the dog.
But all is not lost,
because there are useful forensics snagged on their escape route.
So far, just a top and a hat,
which they'd used to cover the barbed wire on the fencing.
Just gonna go round the other side
and see if we can pick the track up from there.
DOG WHINES Let's go, pup.
Peggy seems to have a scent.
I've picked up something,
and she's taking me the other side of the river now, crossed over,
so I'm just trying to work out where it goes...
But after a lengthy track...
See if there's anything else.
Where's he gone?
..the only thing Sean discovers is that the main group has got away.
And we've picked up a bit of a track,
and then come through quite a busy footfall area
out towards the main road,
where we believe they've probably been picked up.
But there are two hares on this particular track.
And on the other side of the industrial estate...
ASH:Go on. Where's he gone? Find them.
..Ash and Ebby are hunting the first suspect to run.
The guy in a hi-vis jacket who legged it before the van took off.
It's a tall order when so much time has passed...
DOG BARKS ..but Ebby loves a challenge.
Mate, police with a dog, get out here now.
BARKING CONTINUES
Delta-two-six, officers to me, please.
Get out here. On the floor.
You're gonna get bitten if you don't get on the floor.
Stay there. I'm gonna get other cops here,
but you will be bitten if you move, do you understand?
Let's hope so.
One detained at the minute.
Right, mate...
I'm gonna walk you back to the alleyway.
I'm going to make it perfectly clear -
you do anything I don't tell you to do,
you'll be bitten by this dog, do you understand?
You're under arrest on suspicion of theft at the minute.
READS HIM HIS RIGHTS
Do you understand?
The firearms boys arrive to help with the arrest.
That's the alleyway.
Keep walking that way, mate, until you see a police car.
I want you to head up towards these officers here, all right?
Have you locked him up? Yeah, I've locked him up, mate.
If you could just cuff him for me, that'd be great.
Just stop there, mate. Turn around, put your hands behind your back.
Good girl, Ebby. Well done.
Well done. Aren't you clever?
Thank you. Got anything on you you shouldn't have? No.
Anything that's gonna harm me or you? Anything sharp?
Like Ebby's gnashers, for instance...
Good job, Ebby, well done.
..which you'd know about if they got hold of you.
In.
You haven't been bitten or anything like that, no? Sorry?
You haven't been bitten by the dog or anything, no? No.
He may not have been on the wrong end of Ebby's bite,
but he was certainly in the wrong place at the wrong time.
By chance, Sean and I have just been doing
some dog training in this industrial estate,
and Ebby's had a really nice track for him, up and round this footpath,
and then she's found him.
He'd concealed himself in undergrowth down there,
hiding under all the leaves and the shrubbery,
and she's sniffed him out, and we've pulled him out,
locked him up and, yeah, walked him back out.
After checking CCTV of the theft with security...
SEAN:What's that? SECURITY:That's the box.
..it seems the thief brazenly slipped inside the warehouse.
He's been in through the secure area, into the compound.
He's been able to access a pallet full of high-value clothing
and get that out the main warehouse to the side of the gate,
where he's the one throwing it over the fence.
The runner dug out of the undergrowth by Ebby
is currently under investigation for theft,
and with a forensics bonanza from the van
and the clothing recovered by Peggy,
he may not be the only one once CSI work their magic.
What is for sure, though,
is this lot picked the wrong spot for a burglary.
Once the dogs came across it, cos they were here training anyway,
it was only a few minutes before another unit was here,
so it's really good.
Coming up...
Get out, get out.
..a car thief comes to the wrong county...
Get out the car, mate. Get out the car. Get out the car.
You're under arrest for theft of motor vehicle.
20 pallets of shoes.
..footwear theft calls for snow shoes...
Oh, God.
Thought we had a crash then. Slipping snow here.
..and...
You still had no reason to be in lane three.
You should have been in lane one. You weren't overtaking anything.
..the dream of everyone who's ever met a middle lane hog.
You may well be offered a driving standards course.
JOHN THOMSON: When it comes to commercial theft,
there's no link in the supply chain that's safe.
ALARM BLARES
We've already seen a warehouse get turned over.
Get out, get out!
Five males doing boxes over the fence.
But bad guys are just as likely to strike on the shop floor.
Or...There's parcels falling out of the back of the vehicle.
..anywhere in-between.
So, this'll be where they've cut the side,
and given that that Luton van was half-full of these boxes,
I would say we've probably prevented quite a high-value theft.
It's the dead of winter
and a freezing shift for Lloyd and Harrison.
Stolen from trailer.
But things are warming up on Interceptor FM.
POLICE RADIO: 'Driver doesn't speak English.
'He's contacted his daughter.
'He's just woken up to his trailer, and it's been, like, all cut open.'
Reports are on the airwaves of a curtain side theft...
'He had 24 pallets in total.
'I think there's four pallets left.'
..of high-fashion footwear. 20 pallets of shoes?
Curtain-siders slash fabric lorry sides,
then cart off the goods inside, often in an HGV of their own.
POLICE RADIO: 'What time did it hit?'
'At 1:59.'
The cops think they've identified the getaway lorry.
'It's not giving a location by the image.'
But it seems invisible to all but a few ANPR cameras.
Harrison thinks he knows why. One-five.
I'm just looking at it now,
and it looks like it's potentially got Perspex over some of the hits.
Copy that.
If the bad guys have obscured their plate,
it's not enough to fool every camera,
and certainly not enough to fool Harrison and Lloyd.
It's the only place he's gonna go, isn't it, is the A1? Yeah.
Working from scarce confirmed camera locations,
they plot a route to intercept.
We're looking for a HGV that's potentially been involved
in a high-value theft of pallets in Northampton.
They've just got a reg of it, and it's definitely a cloned vehicle.
We think we know where it's going to be going back to.
It's gonna be a case of see if we can catch up with it.
Harrison's stopped his fair share of getaway vehicles,
but this one will be a taller order than most.
It's gonna take some stopping, but hopefully,
if it hits another camera, we're not too far away from it.
Based on its direction of travel and last known location,
the target seems to be heading for the border.
It's gonna be going to the A1. It is, yeah, 100%.
I might hail Lincolnshire, let 'em know. Yeah.
They're normally pretty good, to be fair.
Harrison gives the neighbours a heads-up.
Lincs receiving, November-Golf-Romeo-Papa-six-four.
ON RADIO:'Go ahead. Over.'
Just passed you a vehicle that's potentially gonna be heading
back towards the A1 at Stamford, and probably going north on the A1.
It's gonna be what looks like probably a 7.5-tonner.
It's been involved in an Op Barrack in Northampton town centre.
Op Barrack is a cross-country initiative
to tackle gangs who rip off lorries.
Just for your awareness,
it's coming on to your force area, we'd expect.
'Understood.'
Neighbouring forces are usually quick with support,
but there's a problem.
Due to their weather conditions, they're not going after it?
Curbing resources for bad weather seems overly cautious...
Ooh, God.
..until Lloyd crosses the border and learns the cold truth.
Slipping snow here.
It's snowing. The A1's a death trap.
Thought we were gonna crash then.
And serious speed is not an option.
I have to slow down, mate. Do you feel this? Yeah.
We nearly drifted off the road then. It's snowing here.
This it not what the good guys ordered.
It's actual snow.
Lloyd's driving a kipper on ice.
Lincolnshire are out of the picture.
And a lorry-load of swanky shoes is slipping away in a snowstorm.
I do appreciate what you said about the weather conditions.
It wasn't like this in our county.
Lloyd and Harrison are off their patch and on their own.
Thing is, they've only got three ARVs that'd help us, so...
We're not with it, are we?
But Northants don't like to throw in the towel.
We are on the A1 in your force area, though,
so are you happy we keep going, or do you want us to cancel?
Yeah, it's copied. They've cancelled us, mate.
Game over.
Lloyd needs to turn back at the next junction.
This is the one that got away.
Is that it? Or is it?
Is that it? Yeah, that's it.
The cloned lorry is up ahead.
Contact, contact. Just go past it, mate.
And there's more than one maverick on the A1 tonight.
It's got a marked unit behind him.
A sole Lincolnshire unit has stumbled on the target
and kept behind it.
Just go past it, mate.
With a cross-border wingman in the fight,
it's got to be worth another round,
so Lloyd ducks off the dual carriageway,
and Harrison shouts up the iceman in the lorry's slipstream.
Another unit's flying in,
and there's hope a third county can lend a hand.
Yeah, that is copied.
We'll rejoin behind you a few lorries back.
'Copy that.'
But as Lloyd and Harrison rejoin the A1,
the rogue lorry makes a beeline for a slip road ahead.
Shit. Where are they?
The marked Lincolnshire car has pulled off behind the target.
Its occupants can be in no doubt now that they're being followed.
Everything spells decamp.
Are you ready for this? Yes, mate.
Let 'em know we're with 'em. Let 'em know we're with 'em.
We are with you. 'Copied.'
The target's pulled into a line of lorries
that stopped when the road got too dangerous.
They're out, they're out, they're out, they're out.
Two have legged it, one's still in the cab.
Police with a Taser. Show me your hands now.
Show me your hands now! Show me your hands now!
Get out the car now. I've got a bad knee, mate.
Get out. Police officer with Taser.
Step out the vehicle now.
The driver has a crook knee,
which may explain why he didn't sprint in the snow.
I'll be careful with you. You've got a Taser on you.
Stay where you are.
And he limps out of the cab straight into cuffs.
All right, give me your hands, give me your hands.
You're under arrest at the minute, from theft, at the minute.
Probably no licence, no insurance. The vehicle is cloned as well.
It's a great collar, but in this weather and location...
..the arrest is no picnic.
We've got one detained. We'll have a chat with you.
I need to get you in this car away cos obviously, it's shit weather
and I don't want you stuck... What's up with your knee?
Oh, I don't know. I've never... I don't know. Cool.
So, the 24-pallet question...
..what's in the back?
Oh, you...
Er, from six-four,
it's full of unsecure, badly-packed boxes.
They're all just falling out onto us.
Yeah, I'd say it's gonna be this vehicle.
Do we know what the contents were?
ASOS clothing?
If the shoe fits...
Yeah, we've got all ASOS parcels here.
And there are plenty of them.
LLOYD GRUNTS
It looks like it's literally just been handballed across.
It's not even properly stacked or anything.
It's a 7.5-tonner, full front to back.
It seems nailed on that this is their lorry.
It's got all the stolen stuff in the back,
and he's got no licence, no insurance.
So, yeah, it's a really good result,
especially for the driver, who's had all his stuff nicked.
But he said it's high value,
so it'll be in the probably tens of thousands,
so I think he'll be pretty pleased
that we've managed to get it recovered
and get the offender in custody.
I appreciate there's more people out there,
so it'd be nice to have them as well,
but we'll take this, and as long as we get the stuff back,
get names in the... Obviously, get someone in custody for it.
RADIO BEEPS Go on, mate.
Harrison's suspicions of how the lorry evaded ANPR cameras
were bang-on.
It's got a, essentially... got a film over the top of it,
a thin layer of film,
which is meant to mask its true identity from the ANPR cameras.
But as you can see, it doesn't always work.
No further action was taken
against the driver with the dodgy knee
regarding any allegations of theft from a motor vehicle.
However, he pleaded guilty
to driving without a licence or insurance,
and fraudulent use of a vehicle registration mark.
He got eight points on his licence and a £280 fine.
Really surprised he stopped, especially in snow.
Cos if he'd have wanted to drive his way out,
he probably could have done.
Ever encounter a driver hogging the middle lane
and wish you could give them a piece of your mind?
What is he playing at?
Well, amazingly, it happens to cops too.
There's a black BMW sat in lane three of the motorway
for absolutely no reason, er, not overtaking.
And the beauty is, cops can do something about it.
So we're gonna give him a stop and advise him about his driving.
Charlie and Charlie overtake the right Charlie in the Beamer,
and hit the "follow me" sign.
He's holding right back again.
Behind them, the driver slows to a crawl.
He's coming. Slowly. Mm.
But he eventually limps off the main road and into a car park.
Go on.
Hello, sir. How are you? You OK? I'm all right, yeah.
Do you have your licence on you? Yep. Wonderful. Thank you, sir.
So, the reason we stopped you today
was the fact that you were travelling in lane three. OK.
Why were you travelling in lane three of the motorway
with no reason?
No?
What you were doing by travelling in lane three
was basically causing a blockade, OK?
Cos cars were having to go from lane one to lane two
to lane three to lane four to pass you,
to come back into lane one, which is where you should have been.
Amen to that.
You were travelling at less than 50 miles an hour.
That was the speed limit, 50 miles per hour.
Not on the bit you were in.
Either way, even if it was a 50-mile-an-hour limit,
you still had no reason to be in lane three.
You should have been in lane one. You weren't overtaking anything, OK?
Is everything all right?
Sorry? I'm just checking your tyres, bud. Yeah, yeah.
His car and docs are in order,
but if he's hoping to get away with a talking to,
he's going to be disappointed.
What's gonna happen next?
You're gonna be receiving a ticket
for driving without due care and attention.
One down, several thousand to go.
Lane one is your default lane,
especially when you're travelling at 50 miles an hour.
But the great educating of lane hogs has to start somewhere.
You may well be offered a driving standards course
in relation to this.
It's down to our traffic process team.
Ticket issued, sermon complete, it's back on the road.
Just in time for something a bit more tasty.
It was stolen from Nottingham leisure centre
earlier on this morning.
A car stolen in the next county
has been snapped on the M1 heading this way.
Standby for the bump.
The boys plot up above the motorway to look for it.
It's a green/murky yellow-looking Fiesta.
The Ford Fiesta is the most common car in the UK,
with around 1.5 million in circulation.
Yeah, Charlie's gonna get out.
But not many answer to the description green/murky yellow.
We're gonna shift out the way, mate, to hide the car.
RADIO BEEPS
And it doesn't take long to get a sighting.
It's there. It's there, it's there, it's there.
Go.
Time to intercept.
One-one, standby, standby, standby. Eyeball subject vehicle.
M1 south, junction 16, towards 15 alpha.
Now, with two marked cars on its tail...
We're gonna hold back.
Where is it? Where is it? Yeah. Got it.
The Fiesta is a few hundred metres in front of the cops.
It's just ahead of us, lane two, in front of the lorry.
It's tucked in between two HGVs and hard to keep tabs on.
Is it coming off? Potentially.
The target may be leaving the motorway,
but the cops have lost sight of it.
Can you see him?
No, it's in front of the heavy, but I'll see... The red lorry, yeah?
They need to keep the stolen car in the cross hairs
until enough units arrive to box it in.
We're waiting for some TPAC resources.
It's on lane one, mate. It's on lane one.
Charlie slows and, following the highway code,
pulls in to lane one, where they can monitor the exit slip.
Yeah, yeah. Get as much view as possible.
If the Fiesta ducks off the motorway,
they don't want to miss it.
If he gets into the services,
we'll do a reinforce if it comes to a stop.
Yeah, nice one.
The target's passing the slip.
Oh, he's off. He's gonna go, mate.
He's gonna go, mate.
No, he's dived off at the last minute.
There's the ARV.
The stolen Fiesta now has three cars tailing it,
including the unmarked Armed Response Vehicle in front.
We're behind you if it comes to a stop for a reinforced.
He's on the garage forecourt,
boxed in like their pre-packed sarnies.
Get out, get out! Get out the car, mate.
Get out the car. And he's nicked.
You're under arrest for theft of motor vehicle.
READS HIM HIS RIGHTS
Ah, we're good.
Lean against this car here, buddy. Just lean against it.
Do you understand what's going on?
Well, I don't know. I didn't get what you mean.
You don't get what we mean? Yeah.
This car was stolen earlier on today in Nottingham. No.
You're now driving a stolen car. No, no.
So you're under arrest. No, no.
OK. You're gonna go to custody.
Sorry? You're going to go to custody,
and you'll be interviewed about it there.
In the meantime,
the owner of the Fiesta will be very relieved to get it back.
It's got a disabled walker in the back.
Not only is there a walking aid in the back,
but the boot's packed with pricy-looking fishing gear.
And the little fishy who nicked it...
..is being hauled in...
..and put on ice.
Thanks very much. Enjoy your stay.
The middle lane hogger is off the hook
as no further action was taken.
The thief reeled in on the M1 and landed on the forecourt
pleaded guilty to theft of a motor vehicle.
He got a four-week suspended sentence
and was ordered to pay £154 in charges.
Meanwhile, the owner got his car and fishing gear back
in double-quick time.
So, within a few hours of the car being reported stolen,
we've now got the car recovered, there's no damage to it.
So all in all, a really, really good job,
and resolved within a few hours.
Coming up...
The tree's absolutely massive.
..when you can't see the wood for the trees, start off small...
Cleared.
..and then go massive.
JOHN THOMSON: It's 2:30,
and Storm Bertie has blown chaos into the county.
Oh, Christ alive!
Interceptor James Condon is at the scene of some storm damage
to offer his expert horticultural appraisal.
Oh, it's only a little one, then. Yeah!
A monster tree has come down on the A4500.
RADIO BEEPS Er, yeah.
This is gonna need a full closure.
The tree's absolutely massive.
In the absence of Special Branch, it falls to JC to check it out.
I'll go and have a little look at the tree and see what...
well, if anything we can do. ON RADIO:Thank you.
This is one for the hat, this is.
The storm's wreaked havoc,
reaching speeds of over 100 miles an hour...
Wow. Storm Bert.
..which might not trouble a pursuit car...
That's huge.
..but it has proved to be a high-speed tree terminator.
This could have been fatal.
If this had, erm, gone over and a car had come past,
I would say this could have been fatal.
Mercifully, no-one was hurt.
And now the mission begins to clear the road.
Erm, yeah. Yeah, it could be a waiting game for this one.
Cleared. CHUCKLES
It's looking like a long afternoon for JC...
..until reinforcements roll in.
Ask some questions and see if he wants
to start pulling some stuff out the way for us.
A local logger is on hand to help.
He's got the tools, and he's got the numbers.
He said he's got a yard full of lads that can come down
and literally sort this out.
Time to release the big guns.
TRUCK HORN HONKS
DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYS
MUSIC GRINDS TO A HALT
He's not allowed to touch it unless he gets permission
from Highways or the County Council.
Stand down the big guns, roll out the red tape.
Just gonna call 'em now.
With U-turn chaos on the carriageway,
everything hinges on the man from the council.
Hello, mate! He said yes!
We might not be here as long as we thought we were gonna be.
With chainsaws smoking...
..the chipper in full flow...
..and the crane doing its worst...
..it's all systems stop.
Unfortunately, due to contracting issues, they...
..they weren't able to do the full job.
The council may have authorised the work,
but they won't pay for it,
and community spirit can only go so far.
Out of goodwill, they've opened a lane for us,
so we've just got to tidy up a little bit more
before we can consider letting any more traffic come through.
But charity, like leaves, is thick on the ground today.
And within minutes, a local car recovery team offers to muck in.
Community volunteers, round two.
The guy's just stopped at the road and asked if he could assist
with pulling it out the road.
So I've taken him up on his offer and explained the situation,
and he's said he's gonna give it a go.
With no contract issues, I hope, this time.
Well, he's got part of it.
It's a big ask...
Go on, then. Watch your back.
Whoo!
..especially for trucks designed for cars, not trees.
Who cares about that? JAMES CHUCKLES
But with plenty of horsepower...
Gets it out the way, doesn't it?
..and a bit of ingenuity...
Easy. Look at that.
..two hours after JC arrived on scene...
..he's helping sweep up the last few twigs.
Have a nice weekend!
The coast is clear...
TRUCK HORN HONKS
..thanks to a truckload of community spirit
and a trunkful of elbow grease.
Yeah, we've certainly earnt our...
..our cup of tea, definitely.
Certainly earnt our end-of-shift beer,
I think, tonight as well.
Tree-mendous.
Ha-ha! Yeah.