Craigavon drink driver was detected in Portadown after heading out to a 24-hour garage for cigarettes
A Co Armagh man, who nipped out to a 24-hour garage to get a pack of cigarettes, has been caught driving with excess alcohol.
The 26-year-old appeared before Craigavon Magistrates Court.
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Conor Henry, from Meadowbrook, Tullygally, Craigavon pleaded guilty to driving with excess alcohol.
The court heard police were conducting a vehicle checkpoint at Bridge Street, Portadown on May 2 this year at around 1.15am, when they spotted a grey Volkswagen Golf ‘performed a sharp left’ onto Grantham Park, Portadown.
When police stopped the vehicle the driver, the defendant, was “agitated, had slurred speech and there was a strong smell of liquor from his breath”, a prosecutor told the court.
An evidential breath test was 58 micrograms of alcohol to 100 millilitres of breath. The legal limit is 35.
Henry’s solicitor, Ms Suin Downey, said the defendant takes the matter “extremely seriously” and attended court with his father.
"He tells me this has greatly affected his mental health and is aware of the inevitability of today,” said the solicitor.
"He made the extremely foolish decision to go to a 24-hour garage to get cigarettes. That’s something he is going to have to live with,” she said asking the court to give her client as much credit as possible due to the manner he met the charge.
"He has paid my bill in full and been on to the office on numerous occasions making sure we have everything we need,” she said.
District Judge Michael Ranaghan said he could tell by Henry’s demeanour that he was “remorseful”.
He banned Henry from driving for 12 months and fined him £185 plus £15 offender levy charge.