A 28-year-old Douglas man has been banned from driving for six months for two driving-related offences.

Leo Craig Dale, of Drury Terrace, admitted driving with no insurance and a licence offence and was also fined £500.

Prosecutor Rachael Braidwood told the court how, on January 18 at 1pm, police were on patrol on Brown Cow Hill in Santon when they saw Dale driving a Vauxhall Combo van.

Checks revealed that the van’s registration had expired a month earlier and Dale was subsequently stopped by officers.

He admitted he was the owner and said he had recently bought the van.

He was unable to produce driving documents and further checks found that his last licence was a provisional one which expired in April 2016.

Defending Dale in court his advocate Louise Cooil said that her client had been released from prison in January 2016 and had not been in any trouble since then.

’He has gone about administration matters backwards,’ said the advocate.

’He has purchased a van before arranging his licence and insurance.’

Ms Cooil said that Dale was moving the van from his girlfriend’s home to his own address.

She continued: ’He knew he shouldn’t have driven it and should have arranged for somebody else to drive it for him.’

High Bailiff John Needham asked if Dale had ever passed a test and Ms Cooil said that he had only passed a CBT in respect of a motorbike.

Mr Needham said: ’Obviously you’re no stranger to the courts bearing in mind the 16-page record I have here, but you don’t seem to have been before the court for some time.’

Dale was also ordered to pay £50 prosecution costs.