Midleton District Court heard that the arresting garda had never seen a more inebriated individual behind the wheel of a car than a Ukrainian man who refused to provide a blood sample or a breathalyser when he was detained on suspicion of drunk driving, reports Breaking News.
Detective Garda Patrick O’Callaghan made the remarks on the arrest of 49-yr-old Aleksii Savchenko of The Quality Hotel in Redbarn, Youghal, County Cork, who was pulled over in east Cork last April on suspicion of drunk driving.
Det. Gda O’Callaghan said that he saw a silver Volkswagen Shuttle travelling strangely close to Youghal, County Cork, on the evening of April 15, 2024, reports Breaking News.
For no apparent reason, the car was observed “swerving all over the road,” crossing the white line, and repeatedly braking before starting up again. Just around 11 p.m., Det Gda O’Callaghan pulled over the car at Upper Strand, Youghal.
When the driver, Aleksii Savchenko, opened the door, a number of empty beer cans dropped down the road next to the car. Mr. Savchenko “could barely speak” because to his slurred speech and glazed eyes, according to Det Gda O’Callaghan, reports Breaking News.
The garda detained Mr. Savchenko on suspicion of drunk driving after concluding that he was so inebriated that he posed a risk to both himself and other people.
Mr. Savchenko was taken to Midleton Garda Station, but he was unable to produce a complete breathalyser sample, the court heard.
When a doctor was contacted, Mr. Savchenko was requested to produce a urine or blood sample, but he refused. After then, Mr. Savchenko requested a translator, who was sent over the phone, but he once more declined to produce a specimen, reports Breaking News.
According to defence attorney Stephen Foley, his client was under stress due to his son’s injuries sustained during the conflict in Ukraine and was also suffering from anaemia.
He presented the garda with proof that his client had been admitted to Cork University Hospital for treatment of anaemia shortly after the event and that he was not intoxicated.
Det Gda O’Callaghan said: “In all my time as a garda he was the most intoxicated person behind the wheel of a car I’ve ever seen. I don’t think he would have made it home, to be honest,” reports Breaking News.
The garda also stated that Mr. Savchenko was unable to stand or walk without assistance and slept in the squad car for the most of the drive to the police station.
Mr. Foley said that the empty beer cans belonged to his client’s friends, who had joined him for a picnic the day before. He said that although Mr. Savchenko did not consume alcohol during the picnic, he was too ill to take the empty cans out of the car, reports Breaking News.
He claimed that due of the language barrier and the fact that the translator was Russian rather than Ukrainian, his client did not completely comprehend what was going on.
According to Judge Colm Roberts, he has seen some medical problems that might cause someone to appear to have some, but not all, of the symptoms associated with drunk driving, reports Breaking News.
He said that Mr. Savchenko’s illness seemed to impair his speech, driving, mobility, and capacity to stand. He also failed to explain why there were beer cans in the car.
According to the judge, there seemed to be a substantial contradiction of evidence, and the testimony of three separate gardaís was false if Mr. Savchenko was to be trusted, reports Breaking News.
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