Ballymena mechanic with 'real passion for cars' is told by district judge he seems to have little regard for laws of the road
A young Co Antrim mechanic was told by a district judge that he appears to have scant regard for the road traffic laws.
Craig Wilson, aged 20, from Whitehall Cottages in Ballymena, was fined £350 with a £15 offender's levy and banned from driving for two months for having no insurance.
District Judge Conor Heaney told him at Magherafelt Magistrates Court that he had been dealt with at Ballymena Court for a similar matter in March and now he was back before the court.
Prosecuting counsel said on May 25 this year, police on mobile patrol at Newferry Road, Bellaghy, stopped and spoke to the defendant who was in a car along with a number of other young people.
He said that police checks showed that he was uninsured, although Wilson insisted that he was insured.
The lawyer said police contacted him on June 1 about the matter, and he admitted he did not have insurance.
A defence lawyer who said Wilson has nine live points on his licence, explained that he did have a policy of insurance for a different vehicle and was in the process of changing it over.
He said the defendant has been employed as a mechanic for approximately three years and has “a real passion for cars”.
The lawyer said his job entails driving vehicles and taking cars for MoT on a regular basis.
He stressed that he also has caring duties for his father which required him to drive.
Wilson was allowed 16 weeks to pay the fines.