THINKING he was legal to drive on the road after completing his two year driving ban a man found himself back in custody after failing to reapply for his licence.

Darren Mensah, 40, of Olley Close, Wallington, Surrey, pleaded guilty to driving a private plate BMW X6 on the M4 at Baydon on a January 31 despite not having a licence or insurance. He further pleaded guilty to being in possession of cannabis on the same date.

Crown prosecutor Pauline Lambert told the bench that officers had pulled him over after seeing the vehicle being driven at speed.

After pulling him over they noticed a strong smell of cannabis and discovered a green shopping bag on the back seat containing 140grammes of the drug. He claimed this was for personal use as he suffered from chronic back pain and and sciatica.

A check on the police national database showed that the vehicle didn't belong to him, but he would not divulge any details of the owner, other than to say that he had their permission to drive the vehicle.

Ms Lambert the explained to the bench that last month Mensah had been hauled before magistrates in West Sussex after being caught driving to Gatwick Airport's north terminal on April 7 without a valid licence or insurance. The bench there had disqualified him for a further six months and imposed a community order.

But the earlier matters dating from January had not been dealt with.

His defence, Richard Williams explained his client didn't realise he had to reapply for his licence once his period of disqualification had ended and so thought he was safe to drive on the roads.

Magistrates sitting in Swindon adjourned proceedings for a date to be set at Croydon Magistrates' Court, releasing Mensah on unconditional bail in the meantime.