Drug driver was ‘just going home’

By Adair Winder

Jul 27, 2022

Guilty plea: A man caught drug driving while he didn’t have a licence has faced court. Photo by Megan Fisher

A drug driver who was caught driving while disqualified has been fined $750.

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Michael Webster, 37, of Echuca, pleaded guilty in Shepparton Magistrates’ Court to driving while disqualified, drug driving and possession of methamphetamine.

Prosecutor Leading Senior Constable Deryn Boote told the court Webster, who was living in Nagambie at the time, was unlicensed and tested positive to methamphetamine when he was stopped by police on Heyshed Rd, Wahring, at 10.10pm on August 9, 2020.

Leading Sen Constable Boote said police saw Webster attempt to hide an Eclipse mints tin in the car door. The tin contained three bags with a total of 2.79 grams of methamphetamine.

When interviewed by police, Webster said his reason for driving was he was “just going home” and that the drugs found were “for personal use,” Leading Sen Constable Boote said.

Webster’s solicitor Kristina Kutija told the court her client had no prior criminal history and was living in Nagambie at the time of the offences where his drug use was “socially driven”.

She said he has since moved to Echuca to live with his parents, had stopped using drugs and had started work.

Magistrate David Faram fined Webster $750 and disqualified him from driving for 12 months.