A drunk joyrider who nearly mowed down police in a bid to flee - later to be found asleep next to the stolen car - has been jailed.

Ian Jackson smashed the Citroen C4 he was driving into the back of another vehicle, forcing himself to swerve onto the opposite side of Hythe Road.

When the car became wedged inside a driveway Jackson got out of the car and staggered around.

The 40-year-old of Radnor Bridge Road in Folkestone returned to the car where he was met with officers.

Jackson reversed the car off the steps, narrowly missing the officers, and escaped.

He even avoided a bus which had positioned itself across the road to barricade him in.

Jackson was found half an hour later, collapsed on a lawn in Wych Elm Way, Hythe, next to the abandoned car on July 19.

Earlier in the day Jackson, who didn't hold a driving licence, was visiting a friend in Martello Road, Folkestone, where he grabbed the car keys and took off.

On his arrest Jackson was taken to hospital where he recorded 110 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood.

The legal limit is 80 milligrammes.

He was dished out 18 months in prison when he appeared at Canterbury Crown Court on January 16.

Jackson admitted charges of aggravated vehicle taking, dangerous driving, driving without insurance, driving with excess alcohol, failing to stop following a collision.

He was also disqualified from driving for three years and must take an extended test before being allowed to drive.

Investigating officer PC Peter Wilcoxon said: “Ian Jackson acted selfishly and showed next to no regard for his or others’ safety on the road as he drove around dangerously and chaotically in a car which wasn’t even his.

“A car in the hands of someone under the influence of alcohol can be a lethal machine, so it is fortunate nobody was seriously injured on that day.

“But the message is clear: do not drink and drive.”