Drink driver caught by off duty police officer

A drink driver has lost his licence after he was caught by an off-duty police officer.

The officer was on his way to start a night shift on the evening of 23 December when he had a near miss with a white Audi A1 on the A1M at Peterborough.

Suspecting the driver was under the influence, the officer followed the vehicle while calling for support from on-duty colleagues.

The driver, Ionut Chitu was pulled over a short while later on the A14 at Milton where he provided a positive roadside breath test of 82 microgrammes, more than twice the legal limit of 35 microgrammes per 100 millilitres of breath.

In custody he provided an evidential sample of 70.

At Cambridge Magistrates’ Court on Friday (3 January), Chitu, 31, of Back Lane, Badwell Ash, Bury St Edmunds, pleaded guilty to drink driving and was disqualified from driving for 18 months. He was also fined £500.

PC Ella Coulson, who investigated, said: “Thanks to one of our off-duty police officers, this man was stopped from putting any more lives at risk with his drink driving and now has 18 months to consider his actions.

“Members of the public can also contact us if they suspect a drink or drug driver, through our 24/7 hotline on 0800 032 0845.”