I was pulled over by cops driving a patrol car with a BALD tyre – I couldn’t believe my eyes
A DAD has told of his astonishment at being pulled over by cops driving a patrol car with a tyre so BALD it was through to the metal wire.
Phil Nicholson couldn’t believe his eyes when he clocked the worn out tread while the officers were giving his hire car a random safety check.
The quick-thinking 50-year-old snapped a photo of the wheel before he says the officers fled the scene in their “illegal” blue-light pursuit motor.
But Phil, of South Erradale, Ross and Cromarty, was so annoyed he gave chase - within the speed limit - before dialling 999 to report the officers for driving the clearly unsafe Ford Focus.
A mobile phone image of the tyre shows the extent of the wear and tear, with a clearly visible gash revealing mesh beneath rubber.
Phil’s daughter Bridie, 23, filmed from the passenger seat as her dad warned the cops they were breaking the law.
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Phil said: “It’s one thing to have a slightly bald tyre on the legal limit but this one was outrageous.
“When I challenged them they couldn’t get away from me quickly enough.”
In one video clip, the driver of the cop car is seen speaking to Phil as the worried dad quizzes him over the front, nearside wheel.
In another clip Phil can be seen taking pictures of the tyre and telling the cops: “You’ll kill someone. You’re committing an offence. Stop.”
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Phil claims when he contacted Police Scotland over the phone they at first took the matter seriously but as soon as he told them it was a cop car they lost interest.
He made a couple of more calls via the non-emergency 101 number before the matter was passed on to the force’s complaints department.
On Monday at 12.05pm, two days after the incident, Phil was sent a text message confirming a probe has been launched.
It read: “From Police Scotland (Professional Standards Department). This message is to confirm receipt of your complaint about the police which will now be recorded and passed to our investigation team for further enquiry.
“You will receive written confirmation and a reference number for your complaint once this has been processed by our admin team.”
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We have received a complaint and the matter is under investigation. The vehicle has been taken off the road.”
The revelations emerged amid grim funding fears, a recruitment freeze and falling cop numbers.
We told how cash-strapped chiefs are axing jobs to balance the books.
Senior roles could be chopped while civilian staff vacancies will go unfilled and area divisions face being merged as top brass warn of “hard choices”.
They blame Scottish Government budget constraints for the financial crisis - but hope to maintain the number of bobbies on the beat at 16,600.
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The bombshell came a day after Chief Constable Sir Iain Livingstone retired, months after warning of a £74million shortfall. Successor Jo Farrell joins in October.
The Scottish Government said: “We have increased police funding year-on-year since 2016-17. Around 1,280 new recruits have joined in the last 18 months.”
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