A Lincolnshire man who was convicted in his absence after he didn’t turn up to his Magistrates Court trial is to be sentenced in November.
Matthew Godefroid, 38, of Sleaford in Lincolnshire, appeared before the Isle of Wight Magistrates Court on a warrant after failing to turn up to trial on Thursday last week (26th September).
Prosecuting, Lauren Stone told the court that on 13th May at Thorness Bay Holiday Park, Police were told that a man may have taken a car and driven it whilst drunk.
Officers attended the scene but they found Godefroid inside a static caravan with the keys in his hands. The 38-year-old refused to give a specimen, saying he hadn’t driven the car so he didn’t need to.
When charged, Godefroid pleaded not guilty to a single offence of failing to provide a specimen for analysis.
The court heard how delays in public transport mean that Godefroid turned up some 3 hours late for his trial at which point he was told to hand himself in at Newport Police Station. Godefroid was handed an 18-month driving ban for failing to provide a specimen for analysis back in November 2023.
Magistrates agreed to send the case back to Lincolnshire where Godefroid will next appear – following the compilation of a pre-sentence report – on 8th November.
