Banned driver with more than a dozen convictions remanded into custody accused of being behind the wheel again
A banned driver with more than a dozen driving convictions was remanded into custody on Saturday after he was allegedly caught driving.
Appearing at Lisburn Magistrates Court by video link from police custody, 30-year-old John Joseph Ward was charged with four offences arising from an incident in the early hours of 19 July this year.
Ward, from The Demesne in Newry, faces charges of driving while disqualified, driving without insurance, resisting police and possessing Class A cocaine.
Giving evidence to the court, Constable Russell said he believed he could connect Ward to each of the offences, adding that police were objecting to bail due to the risk of further offences being committed.
He revealed that included in Ward’s 60 previous offences, the 30-year-old has 19 road traffic offences “and he is subject to a four-month suspended prison sentence” for similar offending.
The officer told the court it was around 1am on Saturday morning when police spotted a Nissan car driving without headlights in the Springmartin area of Newry.
When the vehicle stopped outside a property, officers activated their body-worn cameras and they saw Ward “sitting in the driver’s seat,” said Constable. Russell, adding that Ward was known as a disqualified driver.
Defence counsel David McKeown submitted that as the case will take some time to progress through the court, Ward could be granted bail subject to strict conditions.
District Judge Rosie Watters said however, she was concerned about further offending “so I’m going to refuse bail.”
Ward was remanded into custody and the case adjourned to 6 August.