A DANGER driver who slammed head-on into another car fled the scene, leaving a woman trapped and suffering from “the worst pain she had ever been in”.

Christopher Cawood reacted with “oh my god” on seeing the woman’s bloodied face after his Vauxhall Insignia drifted across the road in Ilkley and collided with her car, spinning it several times “like a waltzer on a fairground”.

She had to be cut free by emergency services and spent two weeks in Leeds General Infirmary where she underwent surgery.

In a powerful statement read to Bradford Crown Court said she thought she was going to die.

Speaking directly to Cawood as he sat in the dock, she said: “My life will never be the same again. This has changed me."

Cawood, 44, of Boggart Hill Drive, Seacroft, Leeds, is now beginning a 28-month jail sentence after pleading guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

Prosecuting, Emily Hassell said the crash happened at 11.45pm on December 22 last year as the victim was driving home to Ilkley on the A65 Coutances Way.

She watched “with horror” a car travelling towards her at speed which drifted onto her side of the road and collided with her. The impact caused her car to spin around several times.

After the crash, Cawood spoke to her through her window and asked if she was alright. As she turned to face him, he said “oh my god” before leaving.

The noise of the crash had alerted a nearby householder who came out to assist. He saw Cawood’s car on the pavement next to his house and the other car in the middle of the road.

When asked if he had been drinking, Cawood replied, “Yeah, I’ve had a pint.” He was then given a chair to sit in by the other man before he went to deal with traffic that had built up and to check on the woman’s car.

When he looked back, Cawood had gone.

Police located him three miles away on Burley Road walking with a limp in the direction of Leeds. He also had an injury to his head.

After ignoring several requests to stop he was arrested at the roadside and taken in custody. Officers smelt alcohol on his breath.

Miss Hassell said Cawood was “difficult and aggressive”, and refused a roadside breath test and drug wipe. He shouted that there was “no f***ing evidence” despite officers finding three small empty bags in his pocket that were suspected to have contained drugs. He also claimed his car had been stolen earlier in the evening.

In custody, he refused to provide a specimen of blood for analysis, which meant it was not possible to determine whether he was under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

The victim was found to have suffered a range of injuries including a dislocated and fractured left shoulder, a fracture to the left arm, seven fractured ribs, internal bleeding to the abdomen, two fractured fingers on the right hand, bruising, as well as grazing to the torso, and a ruptured spleen.

She underwent two separate operations on her shoulder but the injury prevented her working and she had to shut down her business.

In an initial police interview, Cawood denied driving the car and said he was just walking on the road. During a second interview, he was told his DNA had been found on an airbag in the Vauxhall.

He said if he had caused any injuries to the victim he was “deeply regretful” but couldn’t remember the incident due to concussion or explain how his DNA was on the airbag.

In her statement the victim said her life “had been turned upside down” by the collision, which had left her “in agony”.

In the months since the crash, she has suffered “nightmarish” hallucinations during a “slow and arduous” recovery.

She said: “I feel like a physical wreck – the lowest I have felt in my life.”

The court heard that Cawood had a record of previous motoring offences including driving without a licence and no insurance, failing to provide a specimen, driving with excess alcohol, and driving whilst disqualified.

Mitigating, Nick Leadbeater said Cawood had offered “his most sincere apologies” to the victim adding: “He appreciates that words are cheap and realistically there is little that he can do after the event.”

In jailing Cawood Judge Watson handed down an extended driving ban of four years and two months to reflect his term of imprisonment, and said he must pass an extended retest before getting behind the wheel again.

She said he would serve half his sentence before being released on licence.