A DRUG-DRIVER who crashed his car into a lamp-post in Chester was disqualified from holding a driver's licence.

Benjamin Follows, 25, of Warrington Road, Widnes, pleaded guilty to a number of charges when he appeared at Chester Magistrates Court on Tuesday, June 28.

He admitted possession of the class B drug ketamine, driving while having an illegal level of ketamine in his system, driving while disqualified, careless driving and driving without insurance.

Prosecuting, Alan Currums said it was on December 9, 2021 when police were alerted to a road traffic collision in Hoole Road, Chester.

The vehicle, a Mercedes, had been wavering across the road and hit a lamp-post on the other side, and was facing the wrong way.

A witness said the vehicle, driven by Follows, had been "wandering" and, following the crash, was on the pavement with damage to the front end.

An off-duty nurse had tended to Follows at the scene and believed he was in shock, and "appeared to have white powder on his nose and lip", believing he was under the influence of a substance.

Follows was taken to hospital and was subjected to the drug-drive procedure, where he was found to have 523 microgrammes per litre of blood in his system, compared to the legal limit of 20.

He had been disqualified from driving since November 2021.

Defending, Stephen Ferns said Follows was lightly convicted, with only one previous conviction that led to the driving ban.

A request for a pre-sentence report was approved by magistrates.

Follows will be sentenced at Chester Magistrates Court on July 27. He was handed unconditional bail but handed an interim driving ban for this offence, to go with his existing driving ban.