Forres drink driver lied to police twice

A drink driver lied to the police after crashing his car then went on to lie again just two months later.

Robert Sutherland, who worked in the licensing trade for three decades, committed his first offence on December 13 last year.

Elgin Sheriff Court was told that the 75-year-old had begun drinking after going to a wake earlier that day.

At about 6.30pm he crashed his car into a wall on Nelson Road in Forres.

Locking the vehicle he left it there and departed the scene on foot.

The police later traced him to his home on St Leonard’s Road, where he originally denied having been in the vehicle that evening.

After being taken to the police station he then changed his story and claimed he’d only been a passenger in the car.

A breath test administered shortly after 10pm that night recorded a reading of 114 – more than five times the legal limit.

Sutherland’s next offence occurred late at night on February 5 upon the A96 near Mundole.

The police received a call from a lorry driver stating that a grey Mercedes travelling in front had suddenly swerved and slowed right down to about 5mph.

The HGV driver stated that if his lorry had been fully laden he probably wouldn’t have been able to break in time.

When officers went to the door of Sutherland’s home in Forres, the court heard he initially tried to ignore them, then refused to let them inside.

They described him as “hostile”, adding that he denied having been driving.

A breath test gave a reading of 110 – exactly five times the limit.

CCTV footage later obtained from a bar in Nairn showed Sutherland getting in the driver’s door of his car that evening.

Sheriff David Harvie questioned whether the defendant had an underlying drink problem, but defence solicitor Stephen Carty replied this wasn’t case.

Mr Carty added that his client had lied to the police because he had “panicked” on both occasions.

The court heard that Sullivan had earlier been banned for a period in 2004 following a previous drink driving conviction.

Sheriff Harvie imposed a fine of £3925.

He also banned Sutherland from driving for four years and ordered that his car be forfeited