Banned driver wants to be pilot, court told
A motorist with an 'appalling' drink driving record who gave a false name and address when stopped by police on four separate occasions now wants to be a pilot, a judge was surprised to hear.
But Munyaradzi Mapiye came down to earth with a bump at Wolverhampton Crown Court when he was jailed for ten and a half months for his latest offence.
Recorder Dean Kershaw told the 22-year-old: "I understand you want to obtain a pilot's licence and find it incredible that you would be allowed to do that with your record of drinking and driving but, if the relevant authority is satisfied, it is not for me to say otherwise."
The defendant gave bogus personal details to police when stopped after failing a breath test in September 2015 and both April and July 2016, the court heard.
In the last of those he was in a head on crash while travelling on the wrong side of the road and received both a suspended prison sentence and driving ban, it was said.
But that did not prevent Mapiye lying about his name and address yet again when he was halted by police in Jeffcock Road, Merridale on April 25, said Mr Howard Searle, prosecuting.
The officers were not fooled and took him to a police station for electronic fingerprinting which revealed his true identity and also disclosed he was a disqualified driver, continued the prosecutor.
Mr Jon Roe, defending, explained: "He made a terrible mistake by getting behind the wheel to help his girlfriend. He has an appalling record with driving vehicles and drinking.
"He is a young man with aspirations who hopes to get a pilot's licence but is now presented with the prospect of overcoming a considerable hurdle if he is to pursue that dream."
Mapiye from Wolverhampton Road East, Parkfields pleaded guilty to driving while disqualified and breaking the terms of a suspended sentence order. He was sent to prison by Recorder Kershaw who told him: "You have been given chances in the past which you have not taken."
