A Saundersfoot teenager has been handed a driving ban after being caught behind the wheel with a quantity of cannabis in his system.
Nineteen-year-old Neirin Samuel Neal, of Middlehill, appeared at Haverfordwest Magistrates Court on Tuesday to plead guilty to a charge of driving a Citroen Berlingo car, with the Class B drug in his system
Prosecutor Abul Hussain told the court that police officers pulled Mr. Neal over in his vehicle during the early hours of March 23 on Dredgemans Hill in Haverfordwest.
“He had committed a moving traffic offence, and when officers spoke to him, they could smell cannabis coming from the vehicle. A roadside test proved positive, and the sample was sent off for analysis,” he explained.
Defence solicitor Jonathan Webb told the court that Mr. Neal, who worked as a labourer for a construction company based in Carew, would lose his clean character status, as he had not been in trouble before.
“He was entirely compliant throughout with police officers. He accepts that he had taken cannabis recreationally, but not that actual day, but we all know it stays in your system for some time,” he said.
Magistrates fined Mr. Neal £280 for the offence and disqualified him from driving for 12 months.
He was also ordered to pay prosecution costs of £85 and a £30 victim surcharge.