A YOUNG MAN said to suffer from anxiety and depression was clocked speeding at 120mph on the M74.

When initially pulled over, James Hill, 25, told police who were tailing him in an unmarked motor that he thought they were having a race and wanted to join in.

However whilst awaiting punishment at Glasgow Sheriff Court, his lawyer claimed he instead "panicked" when the cops flashed their lights at him and he sped up to get off the road quickly.

Fiscal depute Graham Macdonald stated that police were in an unmarked car on mobile patrol when they spotted a BMW whizzing along at 92mph within a 60mph zone. The officers, who had been following another vehicle at the time, now turned their attention towards Hill and tailed him into a 70mph area.

During the high-speed journey, Hill indicated to change lanes. When the police flashed their headlights to let him move in, the accused accelerated sharply and then undertook another vehicle. He then hit speeds of up to 120mph within the second lane.

Mr Macdonald highlighted that motorists within lanes one and three would not have expected a car going that fast between them.

When eventually pulled over by the police near Junction 3A, Hill explained that he believed the unmarked cop car and the other motor were having a race and he wanted to join in.

Alerted by a strong smell of cannabis, the officers then recovered a quantity of the drug from a holdall in the back of Hill's car.

Following his arrest, Hill pleaded guilty to driving at excessive speeds above the 70mph limit in the face of obvious and potential dangers on the M74 near Junction 3A. He admitted accelerating sharply and overtaking a number of cars on the nearside. He also pleaded guilty to having cannabis in his possession.

The incident happened at around 1.30pm on September 11, 2017.

Defending, Ian McClelland claimed that his client was in his car doing nothing wrong. He explained that the police were following another vehicle at speed and flashed their headlights at Hill – to which he then 'stupidly' acted in the manner described.

Ignoring the Crown's explanation that the accused wanted to join in what he thought was a race, Mr McClelland instead claimed Hill suffered from anxiety and depression and "panicked" when he saw the flashing headlights – making a quick beeline for the next exit.

Describing the dashcam footage, Mr McClelland said: "It doesn't look that fast."

He then stressed that it took the police some time to put their blue lights on, but as soon as they did Hill instantly pulled over.

Mr McClelland added: "Up until that time he did not know it was police officers."

Sheriff Barry Divers disqualified Hill from driving for the next 21 months and ordered him to resit his test to get his licence back.

In addition, he was placed on a Community Payback Order and handed 160 hours of unpaid work to be completed within the next six months. Hill, of London Road, was admonished on the cannabis charge.

Following the conclusion of the case, a spokesperson from road safety charity Brake told the Evening Times: "Driving over the speed limit is selfish, dangerous and puts lives at risk.

"There is absolutely no justification for travelling at such excessive speeds. Almost a quarter of fatal crashes on our roads in 2016 were caused by a speeding driver and at Brake, we see every day the devastating impact these fatal crashes have on families and communities.

"We call on the UK Government to invest in road traffic policing as a national priority to provide the police with the resources they need to tackle the menace of excessive speeding on our roads.”