Man was nearly four times over the legal drinks limit
A Pembroke man who crashed his motorcycle while trying to overtake a car was four times over the legal blood-alcohol limit, Magistrates’ Court heard.Francisco Mendonça, 44, pleaded guilty yesterday to driving while impaired on January 30.Prosecutor Carrington Mahoney said a car travelling west along South Road in Paget stopped to turn into the entrance of Botanical Gardens at 3pm that day.The driver saw a motorcycle attempt to overtake on his left side, and then heard a loud crash.Police attended the scene and found Mendonça, who speaks very little English, sitting on a nearby wall.He admitted he’d been drinking that morning, and was subsequently arrested on suspicion of impaired driving.He later provided officers with a sample of breath, which revealed he had 318mg of alcohol in 100ml of blood — around four times the legal limit of 80mg.Mendonça yesterday apologised for his actions.Senior Magistrate Archibald Warner fined him $800 and banned him from driving all vehicles for a period of 18 months.