A Tavistock man has been jailed for dangerous driving on a rural road near the town.

Aaron Clarke, 34, overtook lines of traffic at speed on a stretch of single carriageway with a 40mph limit in a seven-minute spell of bad driving which saw oncoming vehicles flashing at him

Exeter Crown Court heard that he lost control on a bend and crashed into a car being driven by

Clarke, of Cramber Close, Tavistock, fled the scene carrying a rucksack but returned later and was arrested.

The crash happened one afternoon in September last year near the Bearslake Inn at Sourton, between Tavistock and Okehampton.

Clarke was under a suspended jail sentence at the time for an assault and criminal damage.

The court heard Clarke was taken to hospital and a blood sample showed he was over the limit for cannabis.

Judge Stephen Climie said that this was an appalling piece of driving and the victim was fortunate not to lose his life.

He jailed Clarke yesterday (Wednesday) for a total of 21 months, saying immediate custody was justified to stop others thinking “they can do anything on the roads and walk away”.

Clarke admitted dangerous driving and other driving offences including failing to stop. He was banned from driving for two years on top of his prison sentence.