A LORRY driver caught slumped over his steering wheel with a near-empty bottle of whiskey in the rear of the cab has narrowly avoided jail.

Gheorghe-daniel Cristea was sentenced for drink driving and dangerous driving when he appeared at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court yesterday.

Cristea was driving a 44-ton articulated lorry on the M25, between junctions 28 and 28, on November 14 when he was witnessed braking hard at the exit for the M11 junction, almost crashing with the central reservation.

Officers tried to stop him on the M11 by initiating blue lights and a "follow me" sign in the rear of the police car, but the driver failed to take any notice for half a mile.

After he finally came to a stop on the hard shoulder, officers witnessed Cristea slumped over the wheel and an almost empty bottle of whiskey in the rear of the cab.

When they conducted a roadside test, he was found four times over the limit.

Sergeant David Martin, roads policing Unit, said: “Cristea’s actions were dangerous and part of a very bad decision that risked his and other road users’ safety.

“It was dangerous and fell far below the actions of a careful and competent driver.

“Anyone with four times the drink drive limit is a danger on the road, no matter how safe they think they are.

“As a priority for the roads policing unit, we will continue to patrol our county’s roads, ensuring enforcement action is taken against anyone who flouts the law.”

In total, the 34-year-old was sentenced to 24 weeks imprisonment, suspended for two years, banned from driving for three years and ordered to complete 100 hours of community service, after he admitted drink and dangerous driving at an earlier hearing.