A DRIVER who crashed into a stone wall seriously injuring his partner and then told the police his car had been taken in a violent robbery has been jailed for 12 months. 

Awais Azhar was arguing with the woman when his VW Golf hit the wall in Cullingworth leaving her covered in blood and needing hospital treatment, Bradford Crown Court heard. 

Azhar, 24, of Dartmouth Terrace, Manningham, Bradford, rang the hospital telling her ‘don’t say a word’ and lied to the police saying robbers in balaclavas armed with a spanner had attacked him on Shay Lane leaving him with head and facial injuries. 

The court heard that he quickly retracted that story and admitted to the police that he had crashed the car while arguing with his partner. 

He went on to plead guilty to phoning the police saying he had been robbed of the Golf on July 31 last year with intent to pervert the course of justice. 

Prosecutor Nathan Davis said people at the crash scene saw the woman passenger covered in blood. She wasn’t supporting the prosecution case so information was not available about the extent of her injuries. 

Mr Davis said that meant that no more information was available to allow a possible prosecution for causing serious injury by dangerous driving. 

Azhar told officers that someone had tried to beat him up while robbing his car. 

But a hospital nurse heard him telling the female patient not to say a word. 

He told officers he panicked, wanted to get the woman to hospital and was too shocked to call the police immediately. 

Michael Greenhalgh said in mitigation that it was an ill-judged attempt to try to avoid responsibility. Azhar quickly admitted that he was the driver when the Golf crashed. 

He was helping to run the family takeaway while his father was with a sick relative in Pakistan.  

“He’s a man who’s made a mistake and very quickly tried to put that right by accepting it to the police and then pleading guilty,” Mr Greenhalgh said.  

Judge Jonathan Rose warned that perverting the course of justice was almost always met with immediate custody and it was inevitable in this case. 

Azhar had crashed a car with his partner in the passenger seat. She was seriously injured but his response was not to do anything to assist her except to bundle her into another vehicle and let a member of the public take her to hospital. 

He had then woven a lie, ringing her when she was seriously injured and telling her ‘don’t say a word.’ 

She adhered to that so there was no accurate account of what had happened. Azhar then couldn’t be investigated for causing serious injury by dangerous driving. 

Judge Rose warned that people who lie to the police can expect immediate prison sentences. 

Azhar was banned from driving for 18 months.