A man who drove at a lollipop man while kids were crossing the road has been jailed.
Geoffrey Goto’s car mounted the pavement outside a school, forcing children to run out of the way to avoid being mown down.
Goto, 31, of Hoylake Place, was locked up for 15 months at Dundee Sheriff Court after being found guilty of a string of offences, including dangerous driving.
The jury in a trial against him heard that Goto embarked on the “atrocious” behaviour in a desperate bid to outrun police.
The incident took place on June 6 last year at Lawton Road and Law Crescent, after police recognised Goto as the accused in an earlier dangerous driving case and signalled for him to pull over.
Constable Sean Petrie, 25, told the trial Goto briefly stopped his Ford Fiesta outside the then-temporary base of Harris Academy. PC Petrie said: “We pulled in front of him to stop him and I got out to go to his door.
“As I approached he began to reverse.
“There was a lollipop man helping children cross in the middle of the road and he stopped just short of him.
“He then mounted the pavement and travelled along it for about 300 yards towards the junction with Byron Street.”
The officer said there were parked cars on that side of the road so Goto’s vehicle was fully on the pavement, with the school gates on his other side.
He said: “It was a sharp acceleration — he was going quickly.
“There were children about and I saw a group of four schoolchildren walking in his direction who had to take evasive action to avoid a collision.
“Two or three of them had to run into the carriageway to avoid the vehicle.”
Goto then drove off, with police following, and was later stopped at St Leonard Place, where he punched PC Matthew Rhind on the head and struggled with him and PC Petrie.
He was also found guilty of repeatedly driving without a licence or insurance, and an earlier dangerous driving offence – the one he was recognised for.
During this offence on January 9 last year Goto was stopped by officers on Macalpine Road for driving at speed without headlights.
He then reversed away from them, drove round a roundabout the wrong way, then drove off at speed. Goto was also banned from driving for five years and ordered to sit his test thereafter.
https://www.eveningtelegraph.co.uk/fp/dundee-driver-sped-near-schoolchildren-worried-going-jail/
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