A thirsty student with a 4am craving for Lucozade ran six sets of red lights in a police chase that reached almost 90mph, Bradford Crown Court heard.

Muneeb Karim, who couldn’t drive, panicked and sped off after taking his brother’s car without permission to visit a local petrol station.

His driving skills were so poor that the police were alerted by a member of the public and a 20 minute high-speed pursuit ensued.

Karim, 18, of Beckside Road, Lidget Green, Bradford, panicked because he had taken the vehicle without asking and had no driving licence or insurance, prosecutor Jonathan Sharp said yesterday.

The teenager, whose speed reached 88mph, accelerated up Great Horton Road on the wrong side at 75mph, went the wrong way around roundabouts and drove over bollards, the pavement and grassed areas.

Mr Sharp said he stopped only when he turned into a road that was blocked off.

It was dark and raining at the time of the chase, on February 22, and police officers in pursuit said the manner of Karim’s driving was “alarming.”

When a “stinger” was employed by officers to try to halt him, he kept going, saying afterwards: “That’s why I put my foot down.”

Karim’s barrister, Andrew Dallas, said the college student, who holds down a part-time job, came from an excellent family and had never been in trouble before.

He was alone in the car on the five-minute journey to the all-night petrol station and drove appallingly in a blind panic.

Karim pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity to dangerous driving, taking a vehicle without consent and driving with no licence or insurance.

Judge Jonathan Rose sentenced him to 15 months in a young offender institution, suspended for two years, with 180 hours of unpaid work and a six month curfew order. He was banned from driving for 18 months.

Judge Rose told Karim: “It is miraculous that nobody was injured, that nobody was killed.”

He said the car could be one of the deadliest weapons, with a great ability to kill.

Karim was an incompetent driver and that had greatly increased the risk to others.