Donegal man who rammed Garda car twice is jailed

A man with 102 previous convictions, who rammed a garda car twice during a high- speed chase as he fled towards Northern Ireland in April of last year, has been jailed for two years at Donegal Town Circuit Court.
42-year-old Jonathon Ayton of The Close, Raphoe was driving at speeds in excess of 170 kph in a Toyota Avensis car that was taken from the home of a Killybegs couple in the early hours of April 13 last year.
The court was told he had been released from prison just three days earlier.
The court was told that Jonathon Ayton had 72 previous convictions from courts in Northern Ireland and 30 from courts in the Republic of Ireland, including several from Letterkenny courts and a court in Galway.
When gardai apprehended the defendant after the high- speed chase at Meenbog, Ballybofey, on a road that led to Castlederg, County Tyrone, he was wearing plastic yellow gloves that he threw into a stream.
Before his capture, a tyre on the Avensis burst, but the defendant continued to drive the vehicle.
Ayton’s boot prints were found at the home of Sean and Anne Rodgers, Fintra Road, Killybegs where the burglary happened.
He admitted charges of burglary at Fintra Road, Killybegs on April 13 last year, and also pleaded guilty to dangerous driving at Meenbog, Ballybofey on the same date.
He was sentanced to two years for burglary, and given a five months concurrent jail sentence for the dangerous driving offence.
Related charges of unlawful use of a vehicle and dangerous driving on the same date, were taken into account.