A driver who used a laser jammer device that illegally blocks signals from speed cameras has been jailed.
Michael Twizell was sentenced by a judge to three months in prison and fined £1,500 for perverting the course of justice.
The 58-year-old was driving a BMW 3-series on the A658 near Harrogate when he passed a police safety camera van last February.
The camera operator detected an error code on the equipment, which led to an investigation by North Yorkshire Police.
Officers established that he was using a device on the front of his vehicle that illegally interfered with police camera equipment.
Twizell, of Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice.
The judge who sentenced him at York Crown Court today said the police “have a duty to protect us from speeding vehicles” and the device Twizell used interferes with that process.
He said perverting the course of justice was a “serious” offence and the courts “must stop people offending in this way”, adding that he had no choice but to impose an immediate custodial sentence.
Speaking after the hearing, Traffic Constable Andy Forth, from the Traffic Bureau Investigations team at North Yorkshire Police, said:
To use a device which is capable of interfering with police speed measurement is clearly as shown today a very serious matter.
Drivers may face a custodial sentence for using such a device in this way.
North Yorkshire Police will continue to Investigate similar allegations when people use these devices to interfere with the normal course of justice.
I advise anyone who may have a similar device fitted to their vehicle to think about the consequences of using such a device and strongly recommend that they remove it from their vehicle to avoid a future prosecution.
