Flout the law and you will be caught.
This is the clear message being issued by officers at the forces’ commercial vehicle unit just a day after a lorry driver was not only sentenced to a jail term but also had his tractor unit forfeited.
57-year-old Stanislas Kadisevskis, was sentenced at Caernarfon Magistrates Court yesterday (Thursday, September 30) after pleading guilty to fraud. The Latvian national was stopped the previous day on the A55 near Bangor.
When he was initially stopped, he handed a letter to officers which stated that he had been on holidays between September 8 and 15, however, staff at the force’s specialist unit were able to prove that during this time he had made a total of seven international journeys.
He was charged with fraud and the driver, who was working for a company based in Ireland, pleaded guilty when he appeared before Magistrates.
“It is quite possible that this driver didn’t have any rest at all,” said Sergeant Ifan Jones, of the Commercial Vehicle Unit. “In fact this particular driver was initially stopped as he looked tired. Subsequent checks revealed that he had not in fact been on holiday but that he had made several journeys to the continent during the time claimed in the letter.”
Sgt Jones added: “This stop was not undertaken as part of any specific operation – this is businesses as usual for the officers on the unit. It should send a stark warning to lorry drivers that if they do not abide by the law and ensure they take their necessary breaks they will be caught and prosecuted. It really isn’t worth taking the risk.”
He added: “We are intent on making the roads of North Wales safer for all motorists.”
