Drink-driver disqualified for more two years after fleeing from police over county border

A driver who was believed to be over the limit fled from police by crossing the Lincolnshire and Norfolk border – but was caught anyway.Vasgens Salvancs, 34, of Pleasant Close in Lynn, appeared at the town’s magistrates’ court on Thursday, where he admitted failing to provide a specimen for analysis.Prosecutor Holly Postle said that on New Year’s Eve last year, Norfolk Police received a message from Lincolnshire Police reporting suspicions that a driver had made their way into Norfolk while above the legal alcohol limit.

Lincolnshire Police had said that officers had activated their blue lights, but Salvancs failed to pull over.Norfolk officers managed to track him down on London Road in Lynn and activated their blue lights. This time Salvancs pulled his Ford Fiesta over.Police said that Salvancs’ manner of driving was “poor” and that he was swerving in the road.Officers described him as “non-cognitive” and he did not exit his car when asked to do so. However, when asked to provide a roadside breath test, he did comply.However, when he was arrested and taken to Lynn’s Police Investigation Centre, he was asked to perform an evidential test to see how much alcohol was in his system. He refused to do so.In mitigation, Andrew Cogan said that while Salvancs was in police custody, he struggled to understand staff due to Russian being his first language.The solicitor also disputed the fact that Salvancs’ driving was poor.“No CCTV footage was served,” said Mr Cogan, shortly before stating that the A17 is a “high risk area” for accidents, but that Salvancs wasn’t involved in a collision.Mr Cogan also said that Salvancs refused to provide a specimen at the station after struggling with a breathing problem.Salvancs was disqualified from driving for 28 months and fined £333. He was ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £133 and court costs of £103.