AN engineer who repeatedly sped and lied to the police has been jailed for six months, despite begging a judge not to send him to prison so he could pay his daughter’s private school fees.

Matthew Potter, 41, of Langley Place, Billericay, appeared at Basildon Crown Court on Tuesday, where he pleaded guilty to one count of perverting the course of justice encompassing six offences.

Between August 7, 2015 and August 29, 2016, he was caught speeding six times in his BMW 318D and a Mitsubishi L200.

The most serious offence took place on July 1 last year when he was clocked driving at 60mph in a 40mph zone.

Each time he was stopped, he gave officers false information and created a fictitious name on formal documents in a bid to get away with it.

In his first interview, he insisted the vehicles were being driven by people at his work, Network Rail, on test drives.

Potter eventually admitted providing false details after being shown images of him behind the wheel in a second interview.

According to the Mail Online, the freelance engineer pleaded with the judge to let him walk free as a jail term would mean he would be unable to pay his daughter’s school fees.

But Judge Ian Graham jailed him for six months for his ‘dishonest’ actions.

He told him: “Unfortunately for you what you did was dishonest, it was criminal and it was persistent and it was clearly carried out to avoid the consequences of exceeding the speed limit.

“I am afraid these matters must come home to roost and you must face the consequences. These offences were committed during a highly stressful period of your life. But these offences are so serious they can only be met with a custodial sentence.”

Casualty reduction manager, Adam Pipe, said: “Potter blamed his own work colleagues for his reckless and dangerous behaviour.

“He lied to avoid disqualification and thought he could trick police into believing he was innocent. He was wrong.

“We continued investigating the case and Potter admitted being behind the wheel on each occasion.

“He will now serve time in a prison cell.”