Drug driver banned from the roads after fellow motorist reports him for 'erratic driving'

A drug driver has been banned from the roads after a fellow motorist reported him to police for driving erratically on the A47 near Peterborough.

Ashton Smith was spotted crossing from one side of the road to another – but now he has been banned from the roads for more than a year.

Police have warned other motorists of the dangers of driving under the influence.

A 999 call from the concerned motorist was made just after 5pm on 28 March, reporting a white Renault van driven by Smith was driving erratically on the busy road A47 at Guyhirn in Fenland.

Neighbourhood policing officers were in the area when they came across the van at the junction with the A47 roundabout, heading towards South Brink.

The officers followed the van for a short distance, witnessing it cross onto the other side of the carriageway, before pulling it over and detaining 34-year-old Smith.

Suspecting he was under the influence of drugs due to his manner of driving, slurred speech and constricted pupils, a roadside drugs test was carried out which showed positive for cocaine.

Smith was arrested and taken into custody where an evidential blood sample was taken, which later showed 316 micrograms of benzoylecgonine present in a litre of blood (ug/L).

Benzoylecgonine is the main metabolite of cocaine, which is formed in the body after cocaine consumption – the legal limit is 50 ug/L.

Smith, of Churchill Drive, Stourbridge, West Midlands, appeared at Cambridge Magistrates’ Court on Thursday (29 September) where he was disqualified from driving for a year and four months and fined £120 after admitting driving while under the influence of drugs.

PC Matt Smart, who made the arrest, said: “Driving under the influence of drink or drugs is extremely dangerous and can affect your driving in numerous ways, drastically increasing the risk of causing a collision.

“I am thankful to the person who called us that day. Because they acted on their instincts, we were able to locate Smith and take him off the road before his actions could affect anyone else on the roads.”