A 36-year-old man from Chilton has been jailed for 18 months after leading police on a high-speed chase through Darlington in a stolen vehicle. Carl Hollywood was sentenced at Teesside Crown Court on February 12, 2026, following an incident in December where he crashed a white Kia Sportage into stationary traffic while trying to escape from officers.
The pursuit began on December 9, 2025, when Durham Constabulary officers spotted the vehicle near Morton Park. The car had been reported stolen from a property in Darlington just one day earlier.
According to police reports, Hollywood reached speeds of 70mph in a 30mph zone on McMullen Road. He performed several dangerous maneuvers that forced other drivers to swerve before he finally hit two stationary vehicles on Tornado Way.
Hollywood admitted to charges of dangerous driving, theft of a motor vehicle, driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence, and driving without insurance. In addition to his prison sentence, he has been banned from the roads for three years and nine months (45 months).
The driver is also facing a charge of assaulting an emergency worker during his arrest. He is expected to appear back at court to face that charge on May 15, 2026.
