Taxi Driver Online

Taxi driver jailed at Plymouth court for speeding lie

A TAXI driver has been jailed for lying to police by saying his wife was driving when he was caught speeding – on two different occasions. Mihai Petrescu denied he was behind the wheel to avoid being banned from the road, Plymouth Crown Court heard. Wife Monica agreed to the lie and said she was driving when the taxi was caught going through speed traps.

The couple, both aged 32 and with a 10-month-old baby, lied in the same way as disgraced former minister Chris Huhne and ex-wife Vicky Pryce. Judge Paul Darlow, jailing Mihai Petrescu for 12 weeks, said: "These offences are taken seriously by the courts because of the undermining effect the provision of false information has on the enforcement of law and order. "You [Monica Petrescu] took the rap for your husband's speeding not once but on two occasions." He also banned Mihai Petrescu from the road for a year.

His wife, a nurse, was given a 12-week prison sentence, suspended for a two years.

She broke down in tears in the dock as her husband was taken away in handcuffs. The couple, originally from Romania but now living in London, admitted two charges of attempting to pervert the course of justice between January 2011 and April 2011 and again between December 2011 and February 2012.

Alistair Verheijen, for the Crown Prosecution Service, said Mihai Petrescu was working for Taxifirst when he first triggered a speed camera in Lipson Road on January 18, 2011. He said a notice of intended prosecution was sent to Mihai Petrescu as the registered keeper but he signed the form and sent it back, saying his wife Monica was behind the wheel at the time.

The court heard a second form was sent to her and she accepted she had been the driver. Mr Verheijen said the wife accepted a place on a speed awareness course in April as an alternative to prosecution. The taxi was again caught by a speed camera in Gdynia Way on December 11, 2011. The sequence of events was repeated again, with Monica Petrescu claiming she was the driver. Mr Verheijen said investigators questioned the couple, who admitted their lies.

He added Mihai Petrescu wanted to dodge prosecution because he already had six points on his licence at the time of the first offence and wanted to avoid disqualification.

Michael Chambers, for the husband, said he wanted to keep working to support his family. But he added he had given up taxi driving to look after the baby so his wife could work. Nigel Hall, for Monica Petrescu, said she had pleaded guilty immediately. "She will not appear before these courts again," he added.

Investigating officer PC David Williams said after the case: "It is very disappointing that people are still going to great lengths to avoid speed camera prosecutions despite extensive media coverage of similar cases in Devon and Cornwall and their resulting sentences.

"We want everyone to think seriously about embarking on this course of action. "We will investigate matters such as this and identify and prosecute those drivers who attempt to pervert the course of justice."

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