'Drunk' demolition worker smashed Range Rover and lorry on digger rampage

In a series of CCTV and mobile phone footage, the driver can be seen crashing into a black top-of-the-range 4x4 before wheeling off to pummel a second vehicle on Saturday morning (28 Sept).

Staff at Thomas Crompton Demolition's West Bowling premises were then alerted to what was going on and rushed outside to pull the man from the vehicle's cab.

Police have issued a statement in relation to a video of damage being caused to vehicles at Thomas Crompton in Bradford.

A 52-year-old man has since been arrested on suspicion of criminal damage and released on bail as inquiries continue.

Owner Thomas Crompton today told how they feared the employee was heading towards their fleet of 60 vehicles - valued at £6m pounds.

Mr Crompton, 53, said: "There was a serious threat to life here.

"We have no doubt in our minds that he would have gone to do some serious damage if we had not have stopped him.

"We had staff in and around, working on-site, he had no regard for anybody else whatsoever."

The business owner, who has been running his firm for 30 years, added: "This is a man who had been having problems for a while.

"He lost his mother a bit back and we have been helping him with time off and funeral costs.

"But on Saturday morning, when he came by the depot at 7am, I told him there was no driving work on today and he left."

Mr Crompton and a couple of other staff were in the office cabin at the depot at around 10.20am when they heard an almighty crash.

Thomas said: "I heard a massive bang which scared the life out of me, I looked out of the window to see my car, a Range Rover Autobiography, bouncing into the air.

"We looked in shock at the CCTV and could see our 360 25 tonne excavator moving over to and smashing up a £120,000 DAF xs tractor unit.

"My sister, Margaret Crompton, ran straight out and demanded he stop, but he did not listen.

"By this time we had realised it was one of our employees

"I managed to get into the vehicle to get what we call the deadman's handle - the emergency stop on a construction vehicle - to stop him.

"He was fighting me to stop me getting at it, because he knew what I intended to do, he had like a super strength.

"He was adamant he wanted to keep driving that vehicle.

"We had to pull him from the vehicle and secure him until the police arrived to arrest him.

"It is such a shame it has ended like this.

"He is an experienced digger driver, he has worked for us on a freelance basis for a couple of years and we have been nothing but kind to him.

"I am really disappointed.

"We are now in shock thinking what damage he could have done if we had not stopped him. This could have been a murder investigation.

"Family quite often to come to visit us here at the site on a weekend - because I work all hours god sends - and sometimes, if my 18-month-old nephew has fallen asleep in the car, we will leave him asleep in there.

"If he was in there he would not be alive.

"There were also other guys working on the vehicles, cleaning and making repairs. This could have been far more serious than it has been. It is scary to think.

"I do not know what caused him to do this.

"His wife has been to see us, to apologise, but I know that he has been told by the police that he must stay away from us."

On the footage employees, including one woman - Margaret - run over to the digger, with two getting into the cab to pull him out.

The driver falls out of the cab onto his back, when somebody tells him: "You are in trouble."

The man slurs in response: "I know I'm in trouble, I don't give a f**k."

The videos are going viral on Facebook with the videos being shared thousands of times.

West Yorkshire Police said: "At 10.27am on Saturday,  September 28 police received a report of damage being caused to vehicles at business premises in Bowling Back Lane, Bradford.

"Officers attended and arrested a 52-year-old man on suspicion of criminal damage.

"He was later released on bail pending further enquiries."