Ford Mustang driver caught three times over limit in Northampton retail park

A Northampton driver landed a whopping £1,877 court bill and two year ban after being caught behind the wheel of one of the UK’s most powerful sports cars while three times over the drink-drive limit.

Ion Ciobanu, aged 25, admitted driving the red Ford Mustang GT in St James Retail Park on February 5 this year when tests later confirmed he had 112 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of his breath. The legal limit is 35mg.

Ciobanu, of Crossbrooks, in the Wootton area of town, pleaded guilty at a hearing on March 21 when he was fined £1,280 and disqualified from holding a driving licence for 24 months. Magistrates also ordered the 25-year-old to pay a surcharge to fund victim services of £512 — equivalent to 40 percent of the fine — plus £85 towards prosecution costs.

Drink driving is one of the so-called fatal five driving offences — alongside using a phone behind the wheel, speeding, not wearing a seatbelt and careless driving — which are most commonly linked to deaths and serious injuries on roads.

Northamptonshire Police arrested 144 drivers during a six-week pre-Christmas campaign targeting suspected drink or drug-driving.

Inspector Ian Wills of the force’s Road Policing Team said: “Every year we warn people of the dangers of driving under the influence of drink and drugs, yet there are still some who selfishly and recklessly choose to ignore us - not only putting their own lives at risk, but those of innocent road users.

“Along with our colleagues in the NHS, the emergency services deal with the devastating effects drink and drug driving can have and therefore it’s extremely pleasing to see lengthy driving bans and hefty fines being issued by the courts.

“Our focus continues to be to reduce the number of people who are killed or seriously injured on our roads. The work we do is so important in reminding people about the danger of this kind of driving behaviour.”

According to manufacturers Ford, the Mustang’s 5.0 litre V8 GT engine can deliver a top speed of 155mph and acceleration from 0-62mph in 4.8 seconds.