A Bedford man with an appalling driving history was told by a crown court recorder on Monday, September 14: “If you carry on drink driving you are going to end up killing someone.”
Recorder Cairns Nelson QC made his remarks when sentencing Lithuanian bricklayer Aurelijus Zvironas at Luton Crown Court.
Zvironas 44, led police on a high speed chase through Bedford and Kempston in June of this year while drunk at the wheel of his BMW. It ended with him crashing into a traffic light pole and demolishing it.
In court he pleaded guilty dangerous driving, driving with excess alcohol, failing to stop for police, driving whilst disqualified and driving with no insurance.
The court heard it was the fourth time Zvironas had appeared in court for drink driving since 2011. Prosecutor Richard Barrington was told how late on the night of June 9 this year the defendant was behind the wheel of his BMW having been drinking cider at a friend’s home.
Police officers spotted Zvironas performing a ‘U’ turn in Ampthill Road, Bedford.
They decided to follow him and put on their blue lights to indicate he should pull over. Mr Barrington said he pulled up, but as an officer got out of the police vehicle Zvironas sped off.
The court was told the defendant drove through a number of streets in Kempston hitting speeds of 80mph on roads where the limit was 30 mph. He eventually came to a halt in Spring Road, Kempston when he collided with a traffic light pole.
When police got to him he was slumped over the steering wheel and the airbags had been inflated. In the collision the front near side wheel of the BMW had come off and was found 20 metres away.
Back at the police station following his arrest he was given a breath test which showed he was between two and a half times to three times over the drink drive limit. Recorder Nelson was told that in August 2011 the defendant had been banned from driving for 18 months after a conviction for drink driving.
In October 2014 he had been banned for 36 months for driving with excess alcohol The following year he had received another three year driving ban for driving whilst disqualified.
Then in 2016 he had received a suspended sentence for drink driving and driving whilst disqualified. The court was told the defendant had made full admissions to the police and had pleaded guilty at an early stage.
Recorder Nelson was told he lived with his disabled mother in De Havilland Avenue, Shortstown and contributed financially to his family.
Passing sentence the recorder told the defendant: “It is frankly a miracle nobody including yourself was seriously injured in this accident. You were clearly drunk.”
The recorder then told him: “You have a terrible driving record.”
He sentenced him to 12 months imprisonment and banned him from driving for three years and six months. He was also told he must take an extended driving test before he gets behind the wheel of a car again.