A drink-driver mounted the pavement and smashed into a lamppost while almost six times the legal booze limit.
James Gordon’s driving was so shocking that one concerned witness phoned the police and followed him.
They saw his work van clip another car, smashing its wing mirror off, and continue driving until he collided with a lamppost while trying to take a corner.
Fiscal depute Kiril Bonavino told Aberdeen Sheriff Court a witness first spotted the Volkswagen van being driven by Gordon, 56, “swerving” across the A947 near the junction with Riverview Drive, into oncoming traffic.
The witness decided to follow Gordon and phoned the police.
‘He describes it as a few minutes of madness’
Another witness then saw Gordon swerve towards another vehicle and hit it, causing its wing mirror to be “completely smashed”.
Undeterred, Gordon continued to drive.
One of the witnesses stopped to check on the driver of the vehicle that had been struck, before continuing to follow Gordon.
They caught up just in time to see him “failing to negotiate a left-hand bend” before mounting the kerb and hitting a lamppost.
The witnesses immediately went to check he was okay and found him uninjured.
But when police arrived, Gordon failed a breath test and was arrested.
Gordon, of Parkhill Crescent, Dyce, pled guilty to careless driving and driving with 128 microgrammes of alcohol in 100ml of breath. The legal limit is 22 microgrammes.
The incident happened around 8pm on May 2.
Defence agent Liam Mcallister said it was only through “luck and good fortune that not only he wasn’t injured, but thank goodness no one else was injured”.
‘He’s normally a very risk-averse man’
He said a social work report detailed the level of “insight” shown by his client into “how ridiculous his behaviour was”.
Mr Mcallister added: “He describes it as a few minutes of madness.
“He understands this could have been a lot worse.
“He doesn’t shy away from the fact he deserves to be punished for his actions.
“He’s normally a very risk-averse man, a hard-working man. His employers are entirely supportive of him.”
Mr Mcallister said his client had no previous convictions and added: “He’s done a lot of reflecting. No one can be harsher on Mr Gordon for his ridiculous decision than him.”
Sheriff Eric Brown told Gordon: “It’s perhaps a matter of luck and good fortune for you that damage was caused to only a vehicle and a lamppost and not anyone else.
“Had you caused injury or indeed death to anyone you would find yourself on a much more serious charge facing potentially many years in prison.”
He fined Gordon £1,575 and banned him from driving for 20 months.
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