Three arrested after stolen vehicle is spotted in Lewes

Three men have been arrested after police tracked down a stolen vehicle in East Sussex.

The Vauxhall Corsa, which had been reported stolen from Brighton on Wednesday (January 11), was spotted on the A27 eastbound at Lewes on Friday (January 13).

Officers made efforts to stop the vehicle, but the driver made off from police. The car was stopped a short while later in Lewes, where its three occupants decamped. An axe, a knife, a hammer, and a quantity of cannabis were all found inside the car.

A 61-year-old man from Hove was arrested at the scene on suspicion of taking a motor vehicle without the owner’s consent; driving whilst disqualified; possession of a knife blade / sharp pointed article in a public place; possession of a controlled Class B drug – cannabis; and driving a motor vehicle when above the legal alcohol limit.

Police dog units were deployed with the assistance of the National Police Air Service helicopter to search for two suspects who fled the scene.

A 22-year-old man from Chichester and a 35-year-old man of no fixed address were both arrested in Hamsey on suspicion of driving a motor vehicle dangerously; theft of a motor vehicle; and failing to stop for police. The 22-year-old man was also arrested on suspicion of drug-driving, while the 35-year-old man was also arrested on suspicion of being carried in a motor vehicle taken without the owner’s consent.

All three men remain in custody at this time.