A MAN who ploughed into three cars at the end of a high speed police chase after snatching cash from three Aldi stores in less than an hour has been jailed.

Paul McMullen, aged 37, targeted the budget supermarket chain's Kidderminster store first, where he forced open a till at an unoccupied checkout and grabbed £340 while staff were distracted by an accomplice.

Then, just 25 minutes later, the two men when to the supermarket's Stourbridge store and pulled the same trick - escaping with £380 according to Howard Searle, prosecuting.

Mr Searle told Wolverhampton Crown Court that less than 30 minutes later, the two men then went to Aldi in Halesowen where McMullen stole £265 from one of the tills.

This time staff spotted the getaway car being used by the thieves and police officers saw the vehicle later that evening on the Black Country Route and saw McMullen - who was disqualified from driving - behind the wheel.

He sped away once he realised he had been seen by the police and he hit 70mph in a 30mph limit as he tried to shake the officers off, added Mr Searle.

During the pursuit McMullen - who had 89 previous offences on his criminal record - drove on the wrong side of the road and at one stage his driving was so dangerous he managed to lose the patrol car but he was finally nabbed when he hit the three cars.

The court was told McMullen had previously been jailed for committing the same type of offences and he had faced courts in the past on four charges of dangerous driving.

Mr Searle said the man who had accompanied McMullen on the supermarket raids had not been tracked down by investigating officers.

McMullen, he concluded, had committed the new offences just three weeks after being released from prison on licence for previous offending.

Nicole Steers, defending, unsuccessfully pleaded with the court to allow McMullen to be allowed to keep his freedom so he could try and put his life back onto the rails.

McMullen, of no fixed address, admitted a charge of dangerous driving, while banned and without insurance and three charges of theft.

He was jailed for 32 months and disqualified from driving for three years.