Police swooped when a man in a tipper truck took direct action to stop a police camera van catching speeding motorists. The workman used the loading bed of his tipper truck to block the camera
The fuming white van driver, 67, had parked his Ford vehicle just behind the police van, which was tracking motorists on July 14 in Thornton, near Bradford, West Yorks. Pictures show how the man, dressed in shorts and a hi-vis jacket, then raised the truck’s loading bed up to block the speed camera’s line of sight.
Police said he was interviewed under caution on Thursday July 20 and admitted wilfully obstructing a support officer acting in the execution of their duty. And they said the man risked losing his license if he tried to pull the same stunt again.
Paul Jeffrey, head of the prosecutions and casualty prevention unit at West Yorkshire Police, said: “On this occasion, a driver chose to stop and attempt to obstruct the lawful enforcement of speed limits. “It is a criminal offence to wilfully obstruct a safety camera operator in the execution of their duty and we will investigate all such incidents.
“Our staff are working to keep road users safe, and drivers who choose to speed run the risk of being the cause of a tragedy or being prosecuted for speeding. I would encourage all drivers to drive carefully, within the limit and at a speed appropriate to the road conditions.”
The tipper truck driver was given a conditional caution, prohibiting him from parking within 20m (65ft) of any mobile speed enforcement vehicle. He was also told not to do anything to willingly obstruct a speed camera’s view and to remove all social media posts relating to him committing this or other offences.
The man was also issued with a Section 59 Notice under the Police Reform Act, which means a repeat of this behaviour may result in the seizure of his vehicle. Some social media users praised the man’s actions, with one offering: “I’d buy him a pint.”
Another wrote: “Give him a knighthood.” While a third replied: “Well done to mr white van I say.”
However, cops hit back and posted: “For those commenting that they’d buy him a pint or give him a knighthood… 65 people died and over 5,000 people were injured in collisions on the roads of West Yorkshire last year. “The majority of these collisions were entirely preventable, with excessive or inappropriate speed being one of the most common factors in fatal and serious injury collisions.
“We want to keep our roads safe for all road users and the use of safety cameras is part of this work.”
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