A LOCHGELLY man was caught drink-driving by police officers he had been speaking to shortly before in a beer garden.

Martin Lee was more than four times over the limit and it was his third drink-driving offence.

Lee, 52, of Kennard Street, appeared at Dunfermline Sheriff Court.

He admitted that on August 30 last year, in Cartmore Road, Lochgelly, he drove a car having consumed excess alcohol.

His reading was 311 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of urine, the limit being 67 millilitres.

Depute fiscal Amy Robertson said that, at 4.30pm, police had been called to go to the West End Bar.

When they were there, they spoke to Lee about a different matter and at that time he was drinking in the pub’s beer garden.

Shortly afterwards, the officers saw Lee leaving the pub and getting into a car before driving away.

The police stopped the car and Lee was arrested.

Defence solicitor Christopher Large said it was his client who had contacted the police in the first place because he was concerned about something that was happening in the bar.

He had then decided to move his friend’s car “as a gesture of kindness”.

However, Sheriff James MacDonald pointed out it was Lee’s third drink-driving offence.

He told Lee: “It’s bad it’s your third conviction but the reading in this case is appalling.”

The sheriff imposed a community payback order with 12 weeks of supervision and a 10-week restriction of liberty order.

He also banned Lee from driving for four years.