Man got behind the wheel after drinking ‘nearly a bottle of wine’

A man who got behind the wheel of his car after drinking ‘nearly a bottle of wine’ has been sentenced.

A member of the public flagged down a passing police car in Thrapston Road, Brampton, on the afternoon of 23 March, after witnessing a silver Ford Fiesta swerving across the road and narrowly miss a group of cadets walking along the path.

Officers from the Rural Crime Action Team followed the vehicle to The Hurdles where they spotted the driver, Timothy Sledge, parked up.

The 59-year-old blew 109 at the roadside, more than three times the legal limit of 35 microgrammes per 100 millilitres of breath.

He went on to provide an evidential reading of 78 in custody and told officers he had consumed ‘nearly a bottle of wine’.

At Cambridge Magistrates’ Court on Thursday (18 April) Sledge, of Longhedge, Salisbury, pleaded guilty to drink driving and was disqualified from driving for 17 months. He must also pay a £784 fine.

PC Francesca Lynch, who investigated, said: “Thanks to a member of the public, this individual now knows the consequences of drink driving. After consuming almost a bottle of wine, he is lucky he didn’t harm the many pedestrians and road users, or himself. There is no excuse for drink driving and we urge anyone who knows a drink driver to report it to us.”

Cambridgeshire Constabulary operate a confidential 24/7 hotline for drink and drug drivers on 0800 032 0845.