Walsall man drove with fake licence for 37 YEARS

Michael Kennedy, 71, was given an 18 month driving ban for drink driving back in 1978 and in order to get around it he purchased a fake licence for £100, which he has kept ever since.

Rather than apply for a new licence following his ban, Kennedy has used the forged licence for 37 years, driving around in legally insured vehicles and not getting pulled over by police or in any kind of trouble on the roads.

However, while returning from a trip to Blackpool on November 30 2016, he was caught speeding by a camera on a stretch of the M6 at Ashton-in-Makerfield, Merseyside.

Walsall Magistrates' Court heard that the road was usually subject to a 70mph speed limit, but on this day that had been reduced to 50mph in order for roadworks to take place.

Kennedy, of Simpson Road, Beechdale, was caught doing 60mph and asked to send in his driving licence in order for a fine to be processed against him, which led to the discovery being made.

He pleaded guilty to possessing a driving licence with intent to deceive, driving without insurance, driving without a licence and speeding.

Prosecuting, Mr Tim Talbot-Webb said: “Technically, the defendant has been banned from driving since 1978.

“After receiving his ban, he overheard two men talking in a pub about forging driving licences and asked how he could obtain one.

"Since then, he has never come to the police’s attention until this day.When he was caught speeding he sent his licence in to be checked and it was found to be a fraud.”

Defending Kennedy, John Walker, said that when he sent the licence in ‘he probably forgot’ it was a fake.

He said: “He was banned, didn’t renew his licence and it is the old cliché that he brought it off a man in a pub.

"It is a paper licence and over the years you will have heard complaints from people who got lost in the transition from paper to card, but he slipped under the radar.

"He has always insured his vehicles and been a safe driver, the reason he is charged for driving without insurance is because he was given that insurance on a false set of circumstances.

“When he was asked to send in his licence he did so without hesitation, which leads me to think that he had probably forgot himself that it was a fake. He can only apologise and I don’t think he is going to be troubling the court again.”

Chief magistrate Neil Ravenscroft said: “This is a serious offence but we have to sentence you taking into account your age and circumstances.”

Kennedy was given a £295 fine and ordered to pay a £30 victim surcharge, as well as being given a six month driving ban.