A woman who received distressing messages which led to her driving whilst over the prescribed limit has admitted the offence in court.

Seventy-six-year-old Megan Keeler, of Atlantic Drive in Broad Haven, pleaded guilty to the drink driving offence when she appeared at Haverfordwest Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

The court heard that the defendant blew 76 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath after she was arrested at the police station.

Prosecutor Vaughan Pritchard-Jones told the court that on December 17, another motorists was following the defendant between Tiers Cross and Milford Haven, and became concerned by the manner of Ms. Keeler’s driving as her Honda Jazz was being driven slowly whilst crossing the white line.

Suddenly the vehicle took off, getting up to a speed of around 60 mph whilst still crossing the white line.

Ms. Keeler was eventually followed to the Tesco store in Milford Haven where she stopped in the car park.

The witness spoke to the defendant and asked if she had been drinking, a claim which Ms. Keeler denied.

During the exchange, the defendant seemed disorientated and the police were called at around 7 pm.

When the police spoke to the defendant she was upset stating that her son had died recently in London.

Ms. Keeler was subsequently arrested following a positive roadside breath test.

Defence solicitor Jonathan Webb told the court that his client had received “distressing messages” prior to the incident and was planning on seeing a friend later in the evening to talk about it.

However, a visitor from Canada, who the defendant hadn’t seen for quite a while, came to see Ms. Keeler at her home, and had brought a bottle of whisky, which they shared.

Mr. Webb explained that Ms. Keeler hadn’t eaten that day, which further compounded the matter.

He said that the defendant felt okay to drive and there were no aggravating features in the case, stating that she had complied with the procedure and admitted that she was driving the car.

Mr. Webb told the court that the defendant was deeply ashamed by her actions and understood the seriousness and gravity of the situation.

Magistrates handed Ms. Keeler a 20-month driving ban and fined her £233.

She was also ordered to pay prosecution costs of £85, along with a victim surcharge of £32.