A drunk motorist has appeared in court after being found sprawled over the front passenger seat of his car in Tenby multi-storey car park.

William Doherty, 24, was the sole person in the Citroen Berlingo van when officers discovered it with its engine running and lights on, on October 10.

It was obvious to police officers that he had been drinking.

“There were three alcohol containers on the dashboard and the officers tried banging on the window to wake him up,” Crown Prosecutor Kelly Rivers told Haverfordwest magistrates this week.

“They managed to open the passenger door and took the keys out of the engine and there was a strong smell of alcohol inside the vehicle.”

Ms Rivers went on to say that at this point Doherty became aggressive.

“His speech was slurred, his eyes were glazed and he was making no sense,” she said.

Doherty was arrested and taken to a police custody suite where intoximeter tests were carried out. These showed that he had 59mcg of alcohol in his breath. The legal limit is 35.

His solicitor, Liam Francis, informed magistrates that Doherty was visiting Tenby with his father at the time of the offence, to view a caravan which they were going to buy for his sister.

“They were staying in a hotel but when his father woke up, he realised that his son wasn’t there,” said Mr Francis.

“This was because my client had been sick in his bed and as a result, decided to go out to the car to sleep.  He'd turned the engine on because the car was cold.

“He fully understands the seriousness of the offence and wishes to take full responsibility.”

Doherty, who is employed as a landscape gardener in Roydon, Harlow, pleaded guilty to being a charge of a motor vehicle when he was over the legal alcohol limit.

After considering the mitigation, magistrates endorsed his driving licence with ten penalty points. He was fined £200 and ordered to pay £85 costs and £80 surcharge.