Motorist who drove car with missing wheel arrested on suspicion of drunk driving

Gardaí have arrested a motorist on suspicion of drunk driving after seizing a smashed-up vehicle that was missing a tyre as it drove through a busy town in Cork this week.

The vehicle was likened to something fresh out of a destruction derby after it was spotted in Midleton in pitch darkness on Monday night.

There was considerable structural damage to one side of the car, and both side-view mirrors were smashed and dangling from the vehicle when gardaí pulled it over. It had only three functioning wheels, as the tyre was completely absent from the front wheel on the driver’s side.

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The death trap, which looked like it probably used to be a Ford Mondeo, was seized by gardaí and the driver was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving.

Driving a dangerously defective vehicle is an offence punishable by up to three months in prison and a fine of up to €5,000. If found guilty of drink driving, the motorist in this instance would also be looking at another €5,000 fine, six months in jail, and a disqualification from driving.

The arrest comes as gardaí across Ireland ramp up their road policing efforts in the run-up to Christmas – traditionally one of the worst times of year for drink-driving incidents.

Drivers can expect to see more checkpoints across the county in the coming weeks, when officers will also be on the lookout for a wide range of vehicle defects – including worn or under-inflated tyres – as well as insurance and NCT certification.

A number of arrests have already been made as part of the campaign, including two drivers yesterday in west Cork, who were taken into custody after failing breathalyser tests and a roadside drug test for cannabis.

Some 818 people were arrested for driving under the influence during last year’s festive road safety campaign, which ran from December 1 to January 4. Around a quarter of these were found to be driving under the influence of drugs.

So far this year, there have been 165 fatalities on Irish roads.

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