News

Whitland: Driver used ‘James Bond-style’ smoke screen to shake off police

Published

10 years ago

December 7, 2015

Simon Chaplin, 62, flicked a switch on the dashboard of his red Peugeot 309 and “colossal” amounts of smoke came out of the exhaust pipe.

A DRIVER from Whitland tried to shake off a pursuing police officer by activating a James Bond-style smoke screen.

Simon Chaplin, 62, flicked a switch on the dashboard of his red Peugeot 309 and “colossal” amounts of smoke came out of the exhaust pipe.

PC Dafydd Campbell Birch caught up five miles later when Chaplin turned into a farmyard.

Chaplin had a bucket of diesel behind the passenger seat, connected to a pump with a pipe leading into the exhaust. An electrical system linked to the pump, battery and a dashboard switch.

Simon Chaplin outside Swansea Crown Court
© WALES NEWS SERVICE

At the flick of the switch diesel was dripped into the hot exhaust pipe to produce clouds of smoke.

James Belton came across the chase, going in the other direction.

“I thought his engine had blown. The smoke was covering both carriageways and I had to slow to five miles an hour,” he told police in a statement read to Swansea crown court.

PC Birch said he wanted to stop the Peugeot because it had a “DE JURE” number plate, which “didn’t look right.”

He turned around on the B4329 near Haverfordwest, west Wales, and was met by clouds of smoke as Chaplin accelerated away and flicked on the smoke device.

Pc Birch followed Chaplin through country lanes and villages, but sometimes only by the smoke because he couldn’t actually see the Peugeot.

“There was a vast amount of dense smoke coming out the back. It completely obscured the road.

“I had to slow down and keep a distance. I knew when he had turned left only by following the smoke he left behind,” he said.

“At times I came to an almost complete stop because of the smoke.

“I had to look across the top of the hedgerows to see where he had gone.

“For a while I could not see the car but in the distance I could see the smoke going up a hill towards the village of Crundale.

“I caught up with him but the smoke kept coming thick and fast.”
PC Birch cornered Chaplin in the farmyard. He got out of the Peugeot and appeared to hide something behind a post.

PC Birch told him he was watching and Chaplin retrieved a replica 9mm self loading automatic firing Beretta handgun and put his hands up.

Chaplin, recently of Llanfyrnach but now of Parc y Delyn Uchaf, Hebron, near Whitland, Carmarthen, was convicted of causing a danger to other road users by deliberately causing smoke to be emitted, but cleared of possessing an imitation firearm in a public place.

Chaplin told the jury that on January 19, six days before, he had been attacked by police officers, who dragged him out of his mechanical digger and knocked his head on the ground several times.

He said they later drove him to Withybush hospital, Haverfordwest, where they put him inside an ambulance. After being treated he was placed back into police custody but returned to hospital by the officers when he became unwell.

Chaplin said he saw PC Birch activate a flashing blue light “but sort of panicked” and feared he was going to be beaten up again.

Chaplin said the car, the smoke making “contraption” and fake Beretta–which could, in fact, only fire ball bearings–all belonged to a David Llewellyn.

He said the smoke machine had been designed to get rid of moles.

James Hartson, prosecuting, pointed out that moles lived underground but Chaplin said that during normal usage a pipe would be connected to the end of the exhaust and pushed into the molehill.

Chaplin will be sentenced later and was granted bail meanwhile.

But the judge, Recorder Elwen Evans QC, warned him that a prison sentence could be the outcome.

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5 Comments

Tomos

December 7, 2015 at 1:38 pm

I’m sorry but in my opinion he does sound a bit er umm ……… poor dab

replica hand gun, smoke device in the car?

Does he think spectre dress up as Dyfed-Powys police officers ?

PS I think you need to say he CLAIMED the cops tried to beat him up rather than they actually did
Geraline George

December 7, 2015 at 8:04 pm

He is a nasty piece of work. He has been eveding the police for years and seems to be above the law. He called to my house once and dislocated my shoulder. He was slippery enough to get off in court as he hires a good London Lawyer. He has terroised elderly women in Llanfrynach for years and always has gotten off. In one instance he even took the police to court for not arresting him soon enough. He has built himself a huge house in Hebron and done very well. No doubt he will be let off once again and if he is not he will feign illness or something. Interesting to see what will happen to this slippery fish. Others go down for a lot less than he has done. It is us the people who pay for this waste of space.
Alex

December 10, 2015 at 9:25 pm

He must have been convicted for something else as well, you don’t face jail for emitting smoke even if it causes a danger to other road users.
Roger

December 12, 2015 at 6:04 pm

In respect of the comments posted:

1) Tomos, thugs in uniform did cause him actual bodily harm, I saw the results, and so will the court in due course.
2) Germoline (sic) what a load of unhinged claptrap. I notice you failed to mention you were once his Sister In Law. Keep taking the pills.
3) Alex that is an uninformed assumption.

I have known Simon for over 30 years. He is a non-violent decent individual who I am proud to call a friend
Tomos

December 13, 2015 at 5:18 pm

@ Roger:

do you really think so? what kind of person sets up a smoke screen device in his car, drives away from the police when they try and stop him, tries to hide a fake gun when they arrive at his home ?

I guess as you’re his “friend” you must be Felix Lighter to his James Bond? LOL

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