A DRIVER with a large amount of drugs in his system drove through a red traffic light while being followed by police.

Joe David Fraser, 25, was a disqualified driver with two passengers in his vehicle.

Fraser, of North Street in Sandycroft, received a 12 week prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, when he appeared at North East Wales Magistrates Court.

He was told his actions were extraordinarily dangerous and he had put himself and others at risk when he had very high drug readings.

The Mold court was told Fraser had a reading of 1,000 milligrammes of amphetamine in his blood compared to the legal limit of 250.

He was also found to have a 480 reading of BZE, a metabolism of cocaine, compared to the legal limit of 50.

Magistrates also imposed a two year driving ban and Fraser was placed on 20 days of rehabilitation.

The court heard he had two previous convictions for disqualified driving.

Prosecutor Rhian Jackson said police were on duty in Buckley town centre when their attention was drawn to a Ford Escort van.

Officers believed it was being driven too fast for the conditions and the driver not slow down at traffic lights and went straight through.

It was followed into Hawkesbury Road and then Drury Lane when the officers activated their blue lights and the van stopped.

Approached, he said: “I am not going to lie mate. I don’t have a licence.”

The vehicle only had seats for two and there was a third passenger in the back who was not restrained.

A drugs swipe road test at the scene was positive and he was arrested.

Solicitor Phillip Lloyd Jones, defending, said his client had been working on a van ready for the time when he would get his licence back.

He had been through a stressful period and that day he came under some pressure to give two acquaintances a lift to Buckley.

It was they who had given him the drugs in the vehicle, he said.

The court heard Fraser now had a new employer who was aware of the proceedings.

It would be beneficial for the community, rather than a relatively short prison sentence, for his issues to be addressed, Mr Lloyd Jones said.

Probation officer Jonny Belkin said Fraser had been a regular cannabis user and used to spend £250 a week on the drug.

He previously had a drugs debt and had been working part-time to pay it off, but was only being paid £40 a day.

Fraser now had another job and and only smoked a small amount at night time to help him sleep.