A Moray motorist who crashed a car on the day he bought it has been banned from the roads for two years.
Stuart Fallow, from Elgin, was high on drugs when he got behind the wheel with his pregnant girlfriend in the car on the A96 Aberdeen to Inverness road near Mosstodloch when he clipped a kerb.
Drivers spotted the 32-year-old walking “haphazardly” on the verge while waving his arms about and “rambling incoherently” on January 1.
At Elgin Sheriff Court yesterday, Fallow was told he was lucky that he had not killed himself or others in the incident.
Police were sent to the scene after the Nissan Primera stopped near a roundabout.
Fiscal depute Alex Swain said officers initially believed the car had been parked before noticing a tyre had been “completely destroyed”.
She said: “The accused was unsteady on his feet. At one stage he slipped and officers had to grab him to prevent him from falling.”
“While checks were being carried out the accused became increasingly agitated. At this point officers noticed a clear plastic bag with yellow tablets in the grass near where the accused had been standing.
“He was taken to Aberdeen to be medically examined by a police officer. On his arrival he appeared even more obviously intoxicated.”
Fallow later admitted taking both valium and cannabis before getting behind the wheel.
Police tests found that the plastic bag contained 35 diazepam tablets.
Defence solicitor Stephen Carty said: “He had purchased the vehicle that day and was with his partner to visit a family member.
“He does fully appreciate that he could killed himself or indeed other people in the condition he was in.”
Fallow, of Hazel Court, Elgin, was sentenced to 150 hours of unpaid work and banned from driving for two years after pleading guilty to driving while unfit through drink or drugs, driving with no insurance and possessing class-C drugs.