by Finian Coghlan
A man arrested for running a red light who then gave a fake licence he made himself, was banned from driving for two years in the District Court this week (March 20 ).
The court heard how Robert Kabul (40 ) with an address at the Athlone accommodation centre in Lissywollen was seen by gardaí going illegally through the Crescent junction at around 2.45am on October 30, and when stopped, gave a false name, address, and licence.
It transpired Kabul had also been drinking, and when brought back to the station, he returned a reading of 64/100 on the intoxiliser.
His solicitor, Mr Mark Cooney, pointed out that since the arrest, Kabul has satisfied gardaí with the bona fides of his insurance details, and real licence, which was handed into the court.
“My client had done a desk top publishing course and made up the licence, which he foolishly chose to give to gardaí on the night in question. It was good enough to pass initial scrutiny,” said Mr Cooney.
He told the court his client was a full-time student of software development, originally from Kenya, and was married with two children.
“You look like an Ethiopian,” noted Judge Seamus Hughes.
“A lot of people say that,” said Kabul.
“Are you a runner?” asked the judge.
“He didn’t run well that night,” noted Mr Cooney.
The judge banned Kabul from driving for two years, and fined him €100. He also fined him €200 for the false licence.
