A MOTORIST suspected of drink-driving told a police officer he was a ‘gigolo’ when asked about his occupation.

Jim Connors, 30, was stopped by police while driving in Workington on December 10 due to a rear light on his vehicle being out.

Connors got out of the vehicle and was ‘slurring his words’. When asked if he had been drinking, he replied, ‘no’, Workington Magistrates’ Court heard.

Pamela Fee, prosecuting, said the officer could smell intoxicants and requested a breath sample. Connors initially stated he wouldn’t provide one but was asked again and complied with the breath test.

It showed he had 80mcg of alcohol in 100ml of breath. The legal limit to drive is 35mcg.

Connors was arrested for being over the limit. The officer said the defendant was ‘obstructive’ throughout his dealings with him.

He was taken to Workington Police Station and failed to provide an evidential sample. He was slow to answer questions and his eyes were bloodshot.

When asked about his ethnicity, Connors replied, ‘big d*** Italian’. He said his occupation was a ‘gigolo’.

After being asked to provide a breath sample, he said ‘I’m going to bed’.

Ms Fee said it was a deliberate refusal to provide a sample.

Connors, of Cox Court, Brigg, East Lincolnshire, entered a guilty plea to failing to provide a specimen for analysis, after previously pleading not guilty.

Ian Jackson, defending, said: “It’s quite frustrating for Mr Connors. He had driven a few hundred yards.

“He believed he was under the legal limit. Clearly, he wasn’t.

“Mr Connors had been in the pub and had driven the car from the pub round the corner to his home address.

“There’s nothing to suggest his driving was anything other than normal.

“In terms of his eyes, he is diabetic. His eyes becoming bloodshot – this is not related to the consumption of alcohol.”

The court was told that Connors resides in Lincolnshire but travels to west Cumbria regularly where his ex-partner and children reside.

Connors was disqualified from driving for 24 months. He was given a 12-month community order with 135 hours of unpaid work.

He must also pay £100 costs and a £114 victim surcharge.