Emneth man Ashley Flowerday banned from driving by King's Lynn magistrates after cocaine and cannabis found in his car

A man was caught with cannabis and cocaine while drug-driving without any insurance.

Ashley Flowerday, 35, of Church Road in Emneth, appeared at King's Lynn Magistrates' Court on Thursday charged with five separate offences - all of which he pleaded guilty to.

They included possession of cocaine and cannabis, driving with 77mcg of Benzoylecgonine in his system - with the legal limit being 50 - driving without third party insurance, and driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence.

Prosecutor Hannah Butler said police were performing mobile patrols on May 20 last year when they noticed Flowerday's poor manner of driving.

Upon being pulled over, he admitted to driving with an expired licence.

Officers then noticed a smell of cannabis, and a quantity of the Class B drug was subsequently found inside his vehicle.

Flowerday admitted to having smoked some earlier in the day, while Class A cocaine was also found on his person.

Drugs tests revealed him to be over the limit for Benzoylecgonine, and in a later police interview he admitted that the drugs were his.

In mitigation, Stuart Cooper said Flowerday had been helping someone to move house at the time of his offences.

He reportedly had both drinking and drug issues in his life at the time, and Mr Cooper deemed it "unsurprising" that Flowerday was found carrying the latter.

Magistrates were told that Flowerday had taken the cocaine a number of days before the police stop, which "did not raise any issues about his level of impairment".

However, magistrates responded by saying: "You had two drugs in your system and your driving was poor that day."

Flowerday is currently undergoing a 12-month sentence for a separate offence - and Mr Cooper said he is coping well in prison, taking part in sport and working as a teaching assistant.

The 35-year-old has also been granted permission by his mother to return to her home upon release due to his lifestyle changes, according to Mr Cooper.

Magistrates subsequently handed Flowerday an £80 fine for possessing cocaine, as well as £40 for having the cannabis on his person.

He was banned from the roads for three years for drug-driving due to having committed a similar offence in 2018.

No separate penalties were awarded for the insurance and licence matters, although Flowerday was told to pay a £34 victim surcharge.

Magistrates also made an order for the drugs to be destroyed.