INVESTIGATIONS were continuing last night after five people were arrested following a police chase involving a stolen car.

Officers from West Yorkshire Police’s Roads Policing Unit (RPU) swooped after spotting the grey Ford Fiesta in the Halifax area at around 8.40pm on Wednesday.

After indicating for the vehicle to stop, the driver of the Fiesta failed to do so and made off, leading to a prolonged pursuit.

The vehicles made their way towards the Bradford area, with the Fiesta eventually stopped on Rooley Lane, near the Prologis Business Park.

Pictures showed the car blocked in by two police vehicles, with the front end jammed against a lamppost.

The RPU posted a message on its Twitter account that read: “Do not come to Bradford in a stolen vehicle and drive dangerously.

“You will be caught and arrested. All five of you.”

Police later said the Fiesta had been reported as stolen from an address in the Rochdale area of Greater Manchester.

Five people were arrested at the scene and enquiries from Greater Manchester Police are said to be ongoing.

It is not known as yet whether those arrested were from the Greater Manchester area or from West Yorkshire.

Sergeant Cameron Buchan, the officer responsible for leading Operation Steerside, a crackdown on dangerous drivers across the Bradford district, said the car was spotted by officers on a routine patrol as opposed to those involved in dedicated Steerside work.

“In Steerside our officers are looking for the fatal four, but this car was picked up by a patrol in Halifax and followed into Bradford,” he said.

“In terms of stolen cars being driven around different areas, it’s quite common, they don’t just evaporate.

“They are moved around, often to be broken up for parts.

“Where we come across them, people would expect us to stop them and take action, which is what happened. I imagine in this case the vehicle will be returned to its owner, and enquiries will continue with those who have been arrested.”

More than 9,500 offences have now been recorded under Operation Steerside since it began in February last year.

More than a third of those offences - 3,495 - have involved speeding, with a running total of 825 vehicles seized.