Police found several bottles of whiskey inside the driver’s cab when he was stopped
A lorry driver was more than six times the legal drink-drive limit when members of the public reported his dangerous driving to police. He was seen weaving across lanes on the A14 by police who responded.
Officers stopped the Iveco HGV lorry on the A14 eastbound at Fenstanton on Monday afternoon (July 13). They found several bottles of whiskey inside the cab.
Driver Darek Smagiel, 55, provided a roadside breath test and blew 221 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, more than six times the legal limit of 35 microgrammes. Two hours after his arrest in custody, he gave an evidential reading of 121.
Smagiel, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to drink driving and dangerous driving at Cambridge Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday (July 14). He was sentenced to 12 months in prison, suspended for two years, and disqualified from driving for three years.
PC James Allen, from the Road Policing Unit, said: “Smagiel’s driving fell far below the standards of a careful and competent river. He put members of the public at risk of a serious collision. I would like to thank members of the public who called in to report his driving which has ensured he is now off the roads for a considerable time.”
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