A BANNED driver caught behind the wheel over the drink drive limit has been order to complete 200 hours of unpaid work.

Tarandeep Takhar, 29, of Tyersal Grove, Tyersal, was spotted driving a van on Emily Street in Keighley, on February 26, Bradford Crown Court heard.

Prosecutor Richard Walters said there had been short pursuit by police before Takhar pulled over. He was found to have 49 microgrammes of alcohol in his breath, when the limit is 35.

The court also heard that Takhar was subject to a suspended sentence of nine months imposed in May last year for dangerous driving and handling stolen goods.

He had been sentenced to seven and a half years for conspiracy to supply cocaine, in 2012.

Jeremy Hill-Baker, defending, said he had suffered reprisals as a result of the court case last May and had bumped into one of those threatening him.

It was for this reason that he decided to move a works van from outside his home.

The Recorder of Bradford, Judge Jonathan Durham Hall QC, said there were “exceptional circumstances” in this case.

He was disqualified for driving for 18 months and was handed a 28 day residence order.