A DRINK driver who blew four times over the limit was taking his friend’s Astra to the garage when he was stopped by police.

Warehouseman Catalin Dobos, 30, was watched by police driving away from the Applegreen service station on Great Western Way on Easter Sunday.

Prosecutor Graham Dono told Swindon Magistrates’ Court yesterday: “Officers observed the defendant’s manner of driving, which was somewhat erratic. He’s observed to strike the kerb while driving the vehicle at some point.

“Officers stopped the vehicle the defendant was driving. It was immediately obvious to the officers that Mr Dobos was intoxicated. He had all the usual signs; dilated pupils, slurred speech, lack of understanding, red face, lack of cognitive ability.”

He blew 147mcgs of alcohol in 100ml of breath at the roadside but gave a lower reading of 139mcgs at the police station. The legal limit is 35mcgs.

Gordon Hotson, mitigating, said his client had been drinking beer and whisky over the long weekend. He was taking the Vauxhall Astra, which belonged to his friend, to a garage as it had a faulty battery. Dobos had forgotten that the garages would be shut on Easter Sunday. He had a Romanian driving licence and believed – wrongly – he was insured to drive the car.

Dobos, of Ferndale Road, Swindon, pleaded guilty to drink driving. He had no previous convictions.

Magistrates sentenced him to 12 weeks’ imprisonment suspended for a year-and-a-half. He was banned from driving for 34 months and ordered to complete 210 hours of unpaid work and pay £213 in costs and surcharge.