The woman who went on a first date with a personal trainer... before he put seven police officers in hospital

Daily Mail​

25-05-2025

A woman found herself on a nightmare first date with a fitness instructor when it ended in a high-speed police chase and a smash that left seven police officers in hospital.
Mom-of-two Courtney Redfern, 27, was on her first date with Mayzar Azarbonyad, 20, when cops tried to stop his powerful BMW M5 as he drove her home.
Despite Courtney's protests, Azarbonyad put his foot down and led police on a terrifying pursuit through Gateshead and on to the A1M towards Newcastle in the UK.
Supported from the air by a police helicopter, four police cars performed a tactical stop maneuver, boxing in Azarbonyad's car and bringing it to a halt.
However, seconds later an unmarked police Volvo slammed into the cars at 80mph causing a scene described as 'carnage' by witnesses.
Caught in the center of it was Courtney, who like her date, miraculously escaped without any major injuries.
However a source said: 'There was a great deal of trauma for Courtney and her family as a result of what happened.
'It was a first date and no one could have expected an outcome like that from what should have been an ordinary evening out.
'It's fortunate that no one was killed when looking at the wreckage left behind. She's recovering but it was obviously a major shock.'
To Courtney's horror she was arrested alongside Azarbonyad on suspicion of aiding and abetting dangerous driving.
She was told she would face no further action, although she is still under investigation over whether she was in possession of cannabis at the time of the smash.
She is not believed to have continued to see Azarbonyad.
After a brief hearing at Newcastle Crown Court, Azarbonyad simply gave a nervous laugh when asked whether he was still in touch with his date from the disastrous night of April 9.
He was due to be sentenced over the smash but his case was adjourned after he contested a previous conviction.
Newcastle Crown Court was told he accrued eight penalty points for driving with no licence or insurance on September 16 2023, but Azarbonyad claimed to have no knowledge of the conviction.
His barrister Penny Hall said he did not remember committing the offenses and had not been to court in relation to them.
Hall said: 'It is possible someone else may have given his details when stopped by the police.'
Sentencing was adjourned until June 2 for the court to verify whether or not he committed the offenses.
Judge Tim Gittens told the defendant: 'I am granting you bail but I am not giving you any indication of sentence. All options will be open to the court.
'Given the gravity of this offence that will be up to and including custody.'
The 2.30am crash brought the usually busy stretch of the A1 to a standstill for more than 12 hours, with glass and debris left scattered across all three lanes.
Officers were chasing the dark gray BMW near a junction when the 'absolute carnage' occurred.
The smash triggered a large-scale emergency response, with the fire service having to remove the roof from at least one police vehicle to get inside.
Seven officers were taken to hospital with what Northumbria Police described as non-life threatening injuries.
Police initially tried to stop Azarbonyad in the village of Swalwell, Gateshead, as one of his rear lights was defective - but he sped away.
When questioned, Azarbonyad told officers his driving had been 's***.'
On the night of the collision, Azarbonyad had eventually slowed down after being surrounded by police vehicles.
But Simon Worthy prosecuting said another unmarked police car coming from behind collided with them.
Azarbonyad's lawyer Jack Lovell told the magistrates court his client was a self-employed personal trainer at a gym in Newcastle, and had no previous convictions.
The defendant knew he should have pulled over immediately, Lovell said, but after getting on the A1 and driving some distance, he did slow down.
He put his indicators on and gestured out of the window with his hand to show he was braking, the solicitor continued.
The lawyer said a number of the police vehicles manoeuvred around the BMW and helicopter footage showed he was 'essentially at a stop'.
But then, a following unmarked police Volvo, which had earlier reached speeds of 135mph, collided with them at around 80mph.
Mr Lovell said: 'From there, there is something of a domino effect, it flips over and then the other police vehicles are also involved.'
He continued: 'I am not in any way trying to excuse - he should not have been driving the vehicle, it is his driving that has led to the incident on the A1.