Drug-driver caught by police after driving van with no insurance

A North Wootton man who wasn’t insured to drive his van was subsequently found to be drug-driving by police.Samuel Oughton, 34, of The Howards, appeared at Lynn Magistrates’ Court on Thursday where he admitted driving above the specified drug limit as well as driving without third-party insurance.Prosecutor Abdul Khan explained that the offence took place on August 17 last year, when police officers, who were on patrol along Nar Ouse Way in Lynn, noticed Oughton was driving a Vauxwagen Caddy van without any insurance.

After being pulled over, police described him as being “shaky and rather nervous” so decided to carry out a drugs test on him.Oughton provided a positive reading of 4.9mcg delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol – a cannabis breakdown – and he was arrested and taken to Lynn’s Police Investigation Centre. The legal limit to drive is 2mcg. In mitigation, George Sorrell argued that the reason that Oughton was shaky when stopped by police was not necessarily due to the drug.“He is a worried person, he has never been stopped by the police and is of previous good character. He is not used to this,” said Mr Sorrell.“It may not have been the drugs that made him shaky.”The solicitor explained that the mandatory driving disqualification that comes with committing a drug-driving offence would “cause hardship” to Oughton.Oughton was nevertheless banned from driving for 12 months and fined £153. He will also pay a victim surcharge of £61.