Ben Toso: Bidwill man guilty of driving without licence, assaulting police

A young man was lucky he didn’t kill himself after a series of driving offences, including one wild police chase that reached speeds of 150 km per hour.

A man put the lives of police in danger after a high-speed pursuit, just two days after he had been caught twice for driving without a licence, a court has heard

Ben Toso, 23, has pleaded guilty to driving while disqualified, exceeding speed limits by as much as 70 kilometres per hour, and resisting police officers as they attempted to arrest him.

Toso is also charged with driving while under the influence of meth, of which is yet to enter a plea.

Ben Toso pictured outside Windsor Local Court

Court documents reveal Toso was caught driving while disqualified twice on the same day — with police stopping him only 20 minutes after he was first pulled over.

On October 27 of last year, Toso was stopped from a random breath test at 10:45am.

When asked to produce his licence, Toso responded: “I haven’t got a licence”. Police checks soon revealed that, despite never holding a licence, Toso is disqualified from driving until September this year.

According to agreed police facts, before leaving Toso, the police officers ensured he had a mobile phone so someone could collect him: “When police left the accused, he moved into the front passenger seat and was making a phone call.”

However, only 20 minutes later, at 11:05am, police noticed Toso driving northwest along Blacktown Road, Richmond.

When the police questioned why he drove again, court documents note that Toso responded: “I couldn’t get anyone to pick me up.”

Ben Toso leaving Windsor Local Court

Just two days later, on October 29 at 11:39pm, police spotted Toso out driving once more.

But this time, as court documents reveal, Toso led the police on a wild chase south down Castlereagh Road, Agnes Banks.

Toso “drove at a speed in excess of 150 kilometres per hour in a sign posted 80 km/h zone while attempting to evade police,” the agreed facts state.

When the police caught up to Toso, he was placed under arrest and asked to exit the car.

Agreed police facts state: “Immediately upon exiting the vehicle, (Toso) became agitated … (he) was asked to face his vehicle, place his hands on the vehicle which he did not comply with.

“(Toso) immediately removed his hands and attempted to reach into the open drivers door.”

When police grabbed hold of Toso’s arms, he “started to violently thrash back and forward and lunge backwards at police as he pressed off his vehicle.”

Court documents note that Toso’s large build made it difficult for the police officers to bring him under control.

The police warned Toso that if he continued to resist, he was be pepper sprayed, but this did not stop him, according to the agreed facts.

He continued “forcefully pulling away from the police”, with the court documents further describing him as having “acted in an extremely violent manner towards the arresting police.”

Ben Toso

Even after police applied a burst of pepper spray, court documents state Toso still managed “to harshly thrash back and forward and forcefully attempt to throw police off him … until both cuffs were successfully applied.”

Police will also allege that Toso was under the influence of meth at this time, with a roadside drug test returning a positive reading.

Toso remains on conditional bail as the case was adjourned for sentencing before Magistrate Leanne Robinson next month.