The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Drink-drive footballer is banned after crash
COURT: Ex-Arbroath and Montrose player had been downing cocktails prior to early hours incident
A former Arbroath and Montrose footballer has been banned from driving after crashing into the side of a museum after drinking.
David Banjo wandered off dazed and injured after crashing his Mercedes car into the side of the Andrew Carnegie Birthplace Museum in Dunfermline.
He was found by police officers investigating the crash in the early hours and taken to hospital.
The Elgin City player had been drowning his sorrows with cocktails at a Dunfermline nightclub following a 4-0 defeat to Dundee United.
Following the drinking session, 27-year-old Banjo decided to drive home and wrote off his car by flying off the road.
After receiving hospital treatment, Banjo, of Tirran Drive, Dunfermline, spent the rest of the weekend in police custody.
He returned to Dunfermline Sheriff Court yesterday and admitted driving while being unfit to do so through drink or drugs on July 29 on the town’s Moodie Street.
Sheriff James MacDonald banned Banjo from driving for 18 months and fined him £900.
Depute fiscal Jamie Hilland said: “At 3.50am, two police officers spotted the accused walking in Nethertown Broad Street and spoke to him about an earlier matter.”
When quizzed about the nearby accident, Banjo told the police: “It was me driving.”
He gave a positive reading in a roadside breath test before being taken to hospital because of a head injury.
Defence solicitor Jonathan Matheson-Dear said: “He’s a professional footballer with Elgin City and drives there from his home in Dunfermline for training and matches.
“He had been playing that day and afterwards went out with friends. He came back to Dunfermline to Lourenzo’s nightclub and then on to a friend’s home.
“He had been drinking cocktails before heading home in the middle of the night. Because it had been an hour or two since his last drink, he thought he may be fit to drive.
“He was then in an accident and his car was written off. He fully admitted his involvement when approached by the police and was then taken to hospital with a head injury.
“He’s deeply ashamed that he’s appearing in court today. Because of his high-profile occupation, there’s been a lot of comment on social media and press coverage.”