Benjamin Wills jailed over ‘dangerous’ Valentine’s Day police chase

Startling police dashcam footage captures a high speed pursuit, after officers took off after an erratic driver weaving between traffic on the Princes Hwy on Valentine’s Day.

A serial bad driver’s Valentine’s Day antics have landed him more than two years behind bars.

Benjamin Barnes Wills, 27, fronted Geelong Magistrates Court via prison link on Monday for sentence, having pleaded guilty to 13 charges including aggravated exposure of emergency workers to risk, dangerous driving while pursued, reckless conduct endangering life and drug-driving.

Magistrate Kimberley Swadesir jailed Wills for 25 months and 10 days and cancelled his driver’s licence for five years, for a “horrendous piece of driving” she called “incredibly dangerous”.

Benjamin Wills. Picture: Facebook

“The fact you didn’t cause injury to anyone is astounding. The fact you didn’t cause death to anyone, or yourself, is almost equally astounding,” Ms Swadesir told Wills.

Police dashcam footage released by the court depicts the car chase Wills led police on along the Geelong Ring Road on February 14.

Wills can be seen driving erratically, speeding, weaving between traffic and using the emergency stopping lane to overtake other vehicles, with police in hot pursuit.

The chase ended shortly after Wills “sideswiped” a Toyota Kluger and kept driving.

Throughout the episode, Wills went through red lights, drove on the wrong side of the road and reached “incredible speeds”, Ms Swadesir said.

“People who drive in the manner that you did cause deaths,” she told Wills, noting that fatalities do not just affect one person, but entire communities.

A second set of footage – this time captured by a police chopper – was played to the court on Monday.
In it, Wills is depicted crashing into a school fence and coming to a stop in Werribee, before reversing and hurtling after a police car pulled up alongside his car.

Wills was eventually apprehended on Wedge St North.

At Monday’s hearing, Wills’ lawyer said his client had been making the most of his time in custody, completing various courses and working.

Wills also attends Narcotics Anonymous meetings once a week and read books on recovering from addiction, the court heard.

Wills had emphasised, his lawyer said, that he was very sorry and very remorseful, but couldn’t provide a “decent excuse or reason” for what happened.

The court heard Wills had a traumatic upbringing and his lawyer said he “carries a burden” from his youth.

Ms Swadesir said she took into account this trauma, and Wills’ diagnoses of PTSD, borderline personality disorder and a behavioural disorder due to ice and cannabis use.

“Drugs and alcohol have had their grasp on you for some time,” Ms Swadesir noted.

While she was not sentencing Wills for his prior offending, Ms Swadesir said his driving history did him “no favours” and she took it into consideration.

The court heard Wills was previously sentenced for traffic offences in 2019, 2020 and 2021, and this recent offending had also breached a CCO imposed in 2023 for non-driving matters.

Wills was also fined $1500 and must pay more than $10,000 in compensation.

Without a guilty plea, Ms Swadesir said she would have jailed Wills for 32 months.

Originally published as Benjamin Wills jailed over ‘dangerous’ Valentine’s Day police chase