Newport drug dealer caught after dramatic park chase

Callum Kemp, 24, later jumped on to a railway line before he was arrested after he was found hiding in a bush, prosecutor James Evans said.

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He was pursued through Belle Vue Park last summer, Cardiff Crown Court was told.

Kemp, formerly of Allt-Yr-Yn Road, Newport, had attracted the attention of the police who believed he was using the bike to ride around dealing drugs.

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Officers’ suspicions were confirmed and he later pleaded guilty to possession of ketamine with intent to supply.

He also admitted dangerous driving.

Both offences were committed on July 18, 2020.

Mr Evans said: “The defendant was spotted riding an electric bike along Cardiff Road in Newport.

“He went through a red light and caused vehicles to brake and swerve.

“The defendant came close to losing control of the bike which started to skid.

“He then rode through Belle Vue Park and the police chased him on foot through there.”

The prosecutor added: “The defendant was driving on a footpath and it seems he wasn’t a competent rider of the bike because he skidded again and fell off after he went into some bushes.

“When the police arrived he adopted a fighting stance and they used PAVA spray before he climbed over a wall and, rather dangerously, on to train tracks.

“He was found hiding in a bush and detained by officers.”

The court heard how Kemp was jailed for 40 months last November for trafficking cocaine.

Ben Waters, mitigating, said there had been a lengthy delay in bringing these latest offences to court.

He added that his client should have been sentenced for all matters when he received his 40-month sentence in 2020.

Kemp, Mr Waters revealed, had turned to dealing to pay off a drug debt.

The judge, Recorder Gavin Doig, jailed the defendant for 16 months and banned him from driving for two years and eight months.