A man who used his car to take drugs just 100 yards from the family home failed to prove that he had no intention of driving the vehicle back again.
The hearing at Galway District Court on Monday heard how Sergei Egeazarov (38 ), with an address at 4 Rathlad, Cartur Mor, Upper Clybaun Road, Galway, fully denied intending to drive a mechanically propelled vehicle while under the influence of a substance at Clybaun Road on November 11, 2009.
Garda Lisa Halley told the court that she received a report of a drunk male sitting in a car on the Upper Clybaun Road. On arrival at the scene at 5.40pm Garda Halley found the defendant in a slumped position and, after knocking a few times opened the car door to speak to him. The keys were in the ignition though the engine was turned off at the time and when Egeazarov was asked to step out of the vehicle he was unsteady on his feet. Garda Halley therefore formed the opinion that he was too intoxicated to be in charge of a vehicle.
Egeazarov was arrested at 5.50pm and brought to Galway Garda Station where attempts to get an intoxiliser reading were made; however it was found that a “substance” was interfering with the sample being produced. A sample of blood was later sent to the medical bureau and a certificate revealed that there were “opiates class of drugs in his system”. Garda Halley added that when detected Egeazarov had been “sweating profusely”, that there was a bottle of vodka in between two seats, and a “used needle” lying outside on the ground.
Defence solicitor Sean Acton put it to Garda Halley that her statement was “strangely silent” about the time of detection. He further said that since his client was found only 100 yards from his residence “it is quite possible” that he sat into the car to take the drugs, away from the family home, but had no intention of driving back. However, after consideration Judge Mary Fahy said that she couldn’t agree with the issue of detection time.
When Egeazarov took the stand he admitted that he had been in the car taking heroin so that he could do it away from the family home where there are children. He then said that following this he had planned to go home.
Inspector Ernie White put it to Egeazarov that after taking the drugs he would be too intoxicated to drive back home. Egeazarov replied that he didn’t think he would have attempted to drive, that he would have probably left the car there.
“When he woke up that car would have to be moved, he hasn’t rebutted it in my view, he has to be convicted,” said Judge Fahy who was then informed that the defendant has 15 previous convictions including one for robbery for which he received an eight year sentence, with the final three suspended, at Galway Circuit Court in February 2005.
The court then heard that because the three-year suspended part of the previous conviction is still active Egeazarov would now be sent back, under Section 99, to the Galway Circuit Court commencing January 19, 2011, to first deal with that matter.
