A LOVESTRUCK boozer was so eager to visit his girlfriend he travelled to see her in a stolen forklift truck. Gary Findlay concluded a heavy drinking session by ‘borrowing’ one of his employer’s vehicles in the early hours of the morning. Unfortunately for 30-year-old Findlay, an eagle-eyed women spotted him driving off the building site and raised the alarm. Depute Fiscal Agnes Meek told Airdrie Sheriff Court that at about 1.40am a witness saw him driving off with the lumbering industrial machine. She said: “The witness reported it to a relative who was an off-duty police officer. He reported it to the police who were then on the lookout for the machine. “The accused was thereafter seen to leave the vehicle and make his way to another vehicle. “He left the lights on and the engine running. “The police arrived and contacted the owners of the digger who recovered the vehicle.” She went on to say that when Findlay, of Greengairs Road, was apprehended he failed to provide a breath specimen. However, Findlay’s lawyer said that he gave a sample on the first occasion before refusing to comply with a second test. He added: “The vehicle was the property of his then employer. The vehicle was taken from the site he had been working on. “He took the vehicle in order to travel to Slamannan to visit his girlfriend. “He had drank quite a lot during the course of the previous day and it was his intention to return the vehicle. “In his confusion he decided not to give a second sample.” He described it as a “ridiculous drunken incident”, and said his client was extremely ashamed. He added: “He has reached a point in his life where if he does not master this problem then it is going to control him.” Findlay admitted stealing the vehicle on January 5 this year at Greengairs Road. He also admitted that on the same day and location without reasonable excuse he failed to provide two specimens of breath required to ascertain his ability to drive a Manitou MY1035 Forklift Plant Machine on a road or public place. Sheriff John Morris sentenced Findlay to 18 months probation and ordered him to perform 80 hours community service. In relation to charge two, he was disqualified for 18 months and his licence endorsed. | 
Article
