Hardworking dad avoids jail for drink-driving and "opportunistic" theft

Thursday 12 October 2023

A 27-year-old man was caught drinking and driving – and then caught stealing a bag one month later.

But Assistant Magistrate Sarah Fitz chose not to jail Nelson Pinto when his case was heard in court this week because he was working hard to support his family.

Legal adviser Paul Lee, prosecuting, told the Magistrate’s Court that Pinto was on 24 June Pinto was stopped by police in La Motte Street after they noticed that his car had a noisy exhaust and a defective rear light.

Mr Lee said: “He was intoxicated and his eyes were glazed. He said he had had three whiskies.”

A breath test showed he had 40 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, above the legal maximum of 35 micrograms.

On 23 July, Mr Lee added, Pinto was making a delivery to a location in Hilary Street and found a box in a communal area.

Pinto admitted driving while above the legal alcohol limit and theft.

Advocate George Pearce, defending, said of the drink-driving: “Mr Pinto only intended to drive a very short distance.”

Of the theft of the bag, he added: “It was an opportunistic offence. Mr Pinto thinks it was a childish action and a stupid mistake.”

The court heard that Pinto had been working long hours in different jobs to support his family.

Assistant Magistrate Sarah Fitz says she was therefore prepared to impose lenient sentences. She fined him £800 for drinking and driving and banned him from the roads for a year. He will have to retake the driving test before being allowed to drive again.

She also fined him £300 for theft and ordered him to pay £88 compensation for the missing bag. He has been allowed to pay at £100 per month.