EXCLUSIVE: Driver injured after crashing into lamppost during police chase - four to five other suspects seen fleeing scene

A DRIVER was taken to hospital after his vehicle crashed into a lamppost after failing to stop for police.

Four to five other suspects fled from the vehicle after it crashed in Longwood Gardens, Clayhall, east London, just after 1am on Thursday, March 21 2023, according to a witness.

The witness said: "The noise of a police helicopter woke me up so I went out to see what was happening and a car had crashed after a police chase in Longwood Gardens, near the junction with Woodford Avenue, which was sealed off.

"Four to five people fled the scene, but there was one man injured on the ground. There were four armed police units in attendance plus three dog units and the London Ambulance Service."  

A Met Police spokesman said: "The car collided with a lamppost. There were no serious injuries."

He said the force's Department of Professional Standards and the Independent Office of Police Complaints were not involved.

A London ambulance Service spokesperson said: “We were called at 1:03am on March 21 to reports of a road traffic collision at the Junction of Woodford Ave and Longwood Gardens, Ilford.

 “We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew and a paramedic in a fast response car.

 “We treated a patient at the scene before taking them to hospital as a priority.”