Disqualified drink driver caught helping out a friend

A man who had been disqualified from driving for drink driving has been described as being “foolish” for getting back behind the wheel to help his friend.

24 year old James Cook had been banned from driving for 22 months but was caught behind the wheel some 2 months later.

The SAAB 900 car he was driving was picked up by the police on their Automatic Number Plate Recognition system (ANPR).

Cook pleaded guilty to driving whilst disqualified and driving a car without insurance.

When questioned by the police Cook stated that he was moving the car for his friend and that he knew he shouldn’t be driving as he was disqualified.

The SAAB had been bought the same day as the incident by a friend of his.

Cook told the court that he had a call from his friend saying that the car needed to be moved quickly else the previous owner’s wife would have it scrapped.

It was reported that Cook and his friend at the time are no longer friends.

The court heard that Cook had been completing unpaid work from an earlier conviction at the Barnardos donation centre and it was having a positive effect on him. So much so that Barnardos gave him a glowing reference for court and stated that they were hoping to offer him a full time position in the future.

Cook was sentenced to a further 18 month ban to run concurrently with his original disqualification and an additional 60 hours of unpaid work.