A man who was caught with a fraudulent Bulgarian licence which he used to obtain insurance has been disqualified from driving for six months.
The 36-year-old’s solicitor revealed to the court that the defendant had paid 3,000 Bulgarian Lev, between £1,200 and £1,500, for the false document.
Kirilov Pasho, of The Square in Moy, had pleas of guilty entered on his behalf to seven charges at Armagh Magistrates’, sitting at Newry, on Tuesday.
The defendant was charged two counts of making or possessing a false driving licence, two counts of fraudulently using a certificate of insurance, using a vehicle without insurance, making a false declaration to obtain a certificate of insurance and no driving licence.
Pasho was detected by police driving on the Dungannon Road, Moy, on January 10, of this year, with a Bulgarian licence which was found to be fraudulent.
Defence solicitor Jarlath Fields stated: “He accepted it was not legitimate during interview. He instructs he paid 3,000 Bulgarian Lev for it, which is between £1,200 and £1,500.”
Mr Fields explained that the defendant has lived in Northern Ireland for over two-and-a-half years and that he was employed with a meat packing company in Cookstown.
He stated: “I ask that he is given the maximum credit for his early plea. He has been off the road since the date of his detection which was in the early part of this year.
“His licence for him was a necessity at the time. He lives in the Armagh area but works in Cookstown, so he has had to enlist the help of another foreign national to give him lifts to and from work at a substantial cost.”
District Judge Eamon King imposed a six month disqualification on Pasho and ordered that he pay a fine of £375, along with the offender’s levy of £15, within four weeks.
