A MOTORIST who crashed into a hedge while he was over the drink drive limit by almost four times has been jailed.

Magistrates heard that the prosecution that followed the accident on a country road near Penrith was the second time that 40-year-old Alin Vatui  had been put before the court for drink driving.

The defendant pleaded guilty to the offence.

Pam Ward, prosecuting at Carlisle's Rickergate court, outlined how a witness saw the defendant driving an Audi A5 on the B5320 near Tirril on the afternoon of March 2 when he suddenly swerved and crashed into an embankment and roadside hedge.

When police arrived, Vatui was sitting in the car’s passenger seat, talking to an off-duty police officer who was at the scene.

“He admitted that he had recently been drinking and had had a pint of Foster’s lager,” said Mrs Ward. The defendant was breathalysed and produced a positive result for alcohol.

The test confirmed that he had 147mcg of alcohol in 100mls of breath. The legal limit is 35mcg. Vatui claimed the reading was so high because he had consumed more beer after the crash.

He also said he had been drinking the night before. Experts calculated that at the time of the collision he will have had at least 130mcg of alcohol in every 100mls of breath – almost four times the limit.

Mrs Ward added that the defendant had a previous drink driving conviction dating back to 2017, when he was given a drink driver rehabilitation course.

A Probation Service worker who interviewed Vatui said he accepted he had behaved foolishly, despite being fully aware of the risks because or the rehabilitation course had completed after his first conviction.

A restaurant worker, who had three jobs, he said that at the time of his offence had just not thought about what he was doing. A jail sentence would mean Vatui would lose his job, said the officer.

She told magistrates that the defendant, of Primrose Drive, Penrith, was the father of two young children and that they would be impacted if he were to be jailed.

Mark Shepherd, defending, said Vatui realised he had put everything in his life in jeopardy. The lawyer said: “What happens sometimes with people who work hard is that they decide to drink and then have a massive blow-out.

“That is what happened in this situation. He consumed far too much alcohol.” Mr Shepherd added that the defendant was grateful that nobody was hurt when he had his accident.

The lawyer continued: “He can only apologise to the court and says that this will never happen again… He has demonstrated in the past that he is willing to comply with court orders.”

Mr Shepherd added that any risk posed to the public could be addressed with a lengthy driving ban while punishment could be unpaid work.

But magistrates noted the “extremely high” alcohol reading and the fact that the defendant had crashed his car. They jailed Vatui for 14 weeks and imposed a 49 month driving ban.

When released he must pay a £128 victim surcharge.