Chesterfield man 'took his brother's car because he wanted to see his former girlfriend and later crashed'

Ewan Edwards crashed the Ford Focus after losing control on a roundabout in Nethermore Road, New Tupton, writing it off, and then fled the scene because he had been drinking, Chesterfield Magistrates’ Court was told on Wednesday, July 22.

Edwards, who does not have a driving licence, admitted aggravated vehicle taking, driving without a licence and driving without insurance when he appeared before the court.

Prosecuting, Becky Allsop said: “He was aware that he had been drinking and left the scene. He took the car because he decided he wanted to see his girlfriend and he lost control and crashed into the box.”

Mitigating, Steve Brint said that Edwards, a HGV mechanic, had used all of his savings to buy his brother a replacement car following the collision and that he had consumed around two-and-a-half pints of beer prior to the crash.

He said: “He had gone to his brothers because he had recently split up with his girlfriend and he decided to go out and clear his head.”

Sentencing, District Judge Jonathan Taaffe said: “It is only by the grace of God that you didn’t kill yourself or someone else. Just imagine if someone had been walking on the pavement when you lost control. It would have been a fatality.”

He gave Edwards a 16-week curfew, disqualified him from driving for two years and ordered him to pay £85 costs and a £90 victim surcharge.

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