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Drug driver took so much powder his blood was essentially cocaine

Drug driver took so much powder his blood was essentially cocaine
Gun and drugs found during Atlanta traffic stop
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A driver who claimed he took a “big fat line” AFTER getting out of his car was found to have taken so much cocaine his blood sample could not be measured by a lab.

Anthony Tutt was seen speeding in his Audi A3 when cops pulled him over - but when experts tried to examine his blood they found the amount of coke in his system was above the range a laboratory machine could test.

The 23-year-old was discovered to be at least 16 times over the drug-drive limit, but the full level of cocaine in his system could not be fully tested for, police said.

He was first seen by officers driving away at "excess speed" in the village of Friston, East Sussex - and was then spotted minutes later five miles away in Eastbourne where the vehicle again drove off at high speed.

Cops traced the Audi to Tutt’s home in Eastbourne, East Sussex, and arrested him on the driveway last August 29.

Tutt admitted he was the driver and then claimed he took a “big fat line” of coke only after getting out of the vehicle.

But he later told officers he was taking a large amount of the class A drug every day due to a break-up, police said.

A DrugWipe test at the roadside showed he was positive, so he was arrested and taken into custody.

Later he gave a sample that was positive for 183 microgrammes (mcg) of cocaine per litre of blood. The legal limit is 10mcg of cocaine per litre of blood.

The chemical breakdown of cocaine, called benzoylecgonine, was tested in Tutt’s sample and was found to be more than 800mcg per litre of his blood - the maximum the lab can measure.

The legal limit for this element is 50mcg per litre of blood.

Unemployed Tutt was charged with drug-driving and driving without due care and attention.

At Hastings Magistrates’ Court on July 25, he admitted all the charges and was handed a six-month suspended prison sentence as well as being ordered to do 200 hours of unpaid work.

The defendant was banned from driving for three years and ordered to do an extended retest before he is allowed to get his licence back.

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Tutt must also do 15 rehabilitation activity requirement sessions (RAR) and pay £85 costs and a £128 victim surcharge.

PC Michael Dunn, from Sussex Police's Roads Policing Unit, slammed Tutt for his "off the chart" cocaine samples.

He said today (Thurs): “The cocaine levels in Tutt’s samples were found to be off the chart and above the limit that the machine could test for.

“He admitted driving the Audi but said he was not aware of his high-speed, and claimed he had only taken a ‘big fat line’ of cocaine after exiting the vehicle.

“But he also said that because of a relationship break-up he had been taking large amounts of the class A drug every day for two weeks.

“Drugs such as cocaine and cannabis can remain in the body for a long time after being taken, and continue to impact on reactions and ability to drive.

“Drivers who have taken these drugs are putting other road users at risk.”

PC Dunn warned of the dangers of taking drugs then driving.

He added: “This case shows how drugs stay in your system for a long time. It is not acceptable to take drugs and then get behind the wheel.

“We are determined to catch offenders, and we are pleased that another motorist who posed a danger to the public has been taken off our roads.”

By Chris Dyer SWNS

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