A MAN who pranged a friend’s car against a tractor and then gave his name and address to avoid prosecution has been told he made a ‘stupid and expensive mistake’.

Adrian Foster, 46 and from Wigan, was sentenced to three months in prison – suspended for a year – for perverting the course of justice and aggravated taking of a vehicle without consent at Mold Crown Court.

Judge Niclas Parry heard that on April 5, 2022, police were called to a road traffic accident in Welshpool after reports that an orange sedan car hit a tractor and then drove off.

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Police eventually caught up with the driver – Foster – who gave his name as Nicholas Ogden and an address, which was his friend’s who was the owner of the car.

This led to Mr Ogden being summoned to Llanelli Magistrates Court for a number of driving offences, and he was left nonplussed by the accusation until he saw that it was an orange sedan involved.

He confronted Foster about the incident, who then confessed and admitted perverting the course of justice.

Despite the incident occurring in 2022, he was only charged this year because of a change in police systems.

Mr Ogden was forced to sell the car at a knockdown price of £7,000 because of the damage caused, half of its pre-accident value.

However, Judge Parry heard that the defendant had paid his friend the remaining value to make amends, and he agreed with the defence’s assertion that the incident was not a breach of trust.

Sentencing him, Judge Parry said: “People make stupid decisions and you made a very stupid and expensive decision at £7,000.

“It’s cost you a lot of grief and your family a lot of worry.

“The level of harm is medium because another man was told he was going to court when he hadn’t done anything wrong.

“When you do pervert the course of justice like you did, it is marked by a custodial sentence.

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“You have done everything since to put things right – you admitted it to him and you admitted it to the courts.”

Foster was sentenced to three months for perverting the course of justice by giving false details but no separate penalty for the aggravated taking without consent.

He was also disqualified from driving for 12 months.