A MOTORIST who crashed into another car with such force that it flipped onto its roof has walked free from court.

Jacob Lee caused the horror accident on the M62, with his own car careering up an embankment next to the busy motorway.

Instead of remaining at the scene to check on the other driver, the 30-year-old fled the scene on foot and decided to get a train home.

But he was identified as the driver after police found documents with his details on inside his vehicle.

Lee was subsequently charged with failing to stop after an accident and failing to report an accident, and he appeared to be sentenced at Warrington Magistrates’ Court.

Angela Blackmore, prosecuting, explained how the crash occurred on February 16 this year shortly before 3.30pm.

The defendant was travelling in a Ford Fiesta along the M62 heading westbound between junctions 11 for Birchwood and 12 for the M60 at Eccles Interchange.

The victim was travelling in a Ford Kuga, with the weather being described as fine, although it had been raining earlier in the day.

As he was driving however, he was struck from behind with such force that his vehicle rolled onto its roof, before coming to a stop.

The court heard how that stretch of motorway is an ‘all lanes running smart motorway’, with four lanes of traffic and no hard shoulder.

The collision shut the carriageway for a period, causing long tailbacks and severe delays of more than an hour.

As a result of the crash, the Fiesta left the carriageway and travelled up the embankment next to the motorway.

Lee fled the scene before the arrival of police, after getting out of his car and leaving on foot, with the court hearing that he got a train back to his home in the Salford area.

Lee was sentenced at Warrington Magistrates Court

Lee was sentenced at Warrington Magistrates' Court

search was carried out, including the deployment of the police helicopter, however the driver could not be located.

The victim was taken to hospital before being discharged, after which he spent a week with headaches, back pain and had trouble sleeping.

Empty cans of alcohol were found in the car, along with documents with the defendant’s details on.

In an impact statement, the victim said he was unable to work for a week and was nervous about travelling long distances as a result.

Ms Blackmore told the court that Lee has a number of previous convictions, including for blackmail in 2015, for which he received a prison sentence.

In defence of her client, Jane Hedges referenced his guilty pleas at the first opportunity, and how he was grateful that his actions did not cause more serious levels of injury.

She added that he was fearful of a return to custody as he would lose his job, and he was concerned about the impact this would have on his partner.

Before sentencing, district judge Nicholas Sanders said: “You clearly caused a significant accident on the M62 that put someone in hospital, and then you ran away – that was despicable conduct.

“That man luckily was not badly injured, but that was a four-lane motorway and there might have been a lot of other accidents, and your response was to get a train home – that was awful.

“The case does cross the custody threshold. The question is if I can suspend it.”

Lee, of Pilgrims Way in Salford, was sentenced to 14 weeks in prison suspended for two years.

He was also ordered to complete 35 rehabilitation activity requirement days, undertake 250 hours of unpaid work, pay £213 in court costs and was disqualified from driving for 12 months.