A man who was found riding without a motorcycle helmet and later refused to take a breath test was fined $1,500 yesterday.

Brydon Rutherford, 30, pleaded guilty in Magistrates’ Court to refusal to take the breath test.

The court heard police spotted Rutherford riding a motorcycle without a helmet along Par-la-Ville Road and onto Serpentine Road.

Police saw him struggle to keep his balance after he was stopped and almost fell off his bike.

He told police: “I had two beers.”

Police took Rutherford to Hamilton Police Station where he refused to offer a sample of breath for analysis.

The incident happened in the early hours of September 8 last year.

Rutherford, from Pembroke, appeared in court later that year and was charged with drink driving, refusing to take a breath test and riding without a helmet.

He pleaded not guilty at first, but changed his plea yesterday.

The prosecution did not offer any evidence for the other offences.

Rutherford told the court yesterday: “Never in my 30 years of life have I been in trouble with the law.

“I’ll take this day into consideration in the future.”

Magistrate Maxanne Anderson banned him from the roads for 18 months and ordered him to pay the fine by the end of the day.

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