DRUG dealer William Douglas, who was arrested after a high speed car chase through the town, admitted supplying heroin to people in Chippenham regularly, a court heard.

Douglas, 27, of Ridings Mead, pleaded guilty to possession of heroin with intent to supply and being concerned with the supply of the drug.

He appeared before North Wiltshire magistrates sitting in Chippenham on September 8 after police caught him after the chase through the town on August 29.

Leon Bull, 24, of Wessex Road, who drove the car in which he was a passenger, pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, failing to stop, and not having insurance or an MoT certificate.

The pair's case was sent to Swindon Crown Court for sentencing but was adjourned on Friday after a blood test revealed Bull had a controlled substance in his blood at the time, which would affect the dangerous driving conviction.

On August 29, one marked and one unmarked police vehicle followed the car driven by Mr Bull, with Mr Douglas and a girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, as passengers, as it sped through the town, overtaking in the face of on-coming traffic and ignoring red lights. It finally came to a stop in Honeybrook Close.

PC Paul Rhys, of the divisional drugs unit at Melksham, said: "They were very lucky they didn't kill anyone."

The chase started near Chippenham Golf Club, where police, who had been looking for the car, saw it in a queue of traffic and tried to stop it, but Mr Bull jumped the queue, drove across the roundabout and up Malmesbury Road towards the town.

"Cars were queued up along the road to turn into Long Ridings and fierce breaking led to their car skidding and mounting the curb."

PC Rhys, who was travelling in the unmarked vehicle, said when the car got as far as Hardenhuish Avenue it jumped a queue of waiting traffic and turned on to Bristol Road without stopping to look.

When the car finally stopped in Honeybrook Close, the two men and the girl ran off but were caught by police close by.

Mr Douglas was found with six grams of heroin with a street value of £600 on his person and the girl was charged with possession of cannabis.

Crack cocaine worth £200 was also found in the vehicle.

Douglas admitted to magistrates he had been supplying at least half an ounce of heroin a day to people in Chippenham for the past ten months.

The pair will again appear before a judge at Swindon Crown Court on November 24.

PC Des Moloney of the drug unit, said: "There is a growing heroin problem in Chippenham and it's the upward trend which we find worrying.

"Not every drug addict in Chippenham is on heroin, but if we look back five years you could count the number on one hand. Now you would need a whole football team."