A BANNED Oldbury driver hit speeds of 80mph in a terrifying police chase through residential streets, a court heard.

It was the eighth time Ashok Balu had been caught behind the wheel of a car when he was banned from the roads.

The 34-year-old, who has a criminal record going back 20 years, was jailed for 18 months at Wolverhampton Crown Court.

Judge Amjad Nawaz said it was blatantly clear he had no respect at all for court orders.

He said Balu who was also disqualified for another five years had been driving with a "complete disregard" for the safety of other road users.

Sati Ruck, prosecuting, said patrolling police officers saw Balu driving an Audi at an excessive speed on the M5 and they called on him to stop his vehicle.

But Balu drove off and, during the ensuing high speed chase, he went through three sets of traffic lights on red and also drove on the wrong side of the road.

He also turned off the lights on the Audi in a bid to shake off the pursuing police officers but the chase finally came to a halt when Balu crashed into a parked car and then hit railings outside a fast food restuarant.

Balu, of Apollo Road, admitted driving dangerously, while disqualified and without insurance and the judge ruled the only sentence had to be one of immediate custody.

The court was told that Balu had been jailed for 27 months in 2009 for another offence of dangerous driving - an incident in which another driver was injured.