A delivery driver has been landed with a court bill of more than £300 after being caught at the wheel under the influence of cannabis.

Nikolaj Ivlev, 31, flew in from his home in Lithuania for the sentencing at Weymouth Magistrates’ Court where he pleaded guilty to the charge against him.

The court was told that on July, 31, 2023 he drove a Polish-registered vehicle on the A352 at Winfrith when the proportion of a controlled drug, namely cannabis, in his blood, namely 4.2 microgrammes, exceeded the specified limit. The legal limit for Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol is 2 microgrammes per litre of blood.

Elizabeth Valera, prosecuting, told the court that at around 10.30pm on July 31, police officers were driving behind the defendant’s van when they smelled cannabis.

She said: “They pulled the van over and spoke to Ivlev and described him smelling of cannabis.

“They found cannabis in the van and Ivlev went through the procedure for a blood test and was fully compliant with police.

“4.2 microgrammes of THC was found in his blood, 2.2 microgrammes over the legal limit.”

Ian Brazier, mitigating, said Ivlev worked for a Lithuanian delivery company at the time which delivered to France and England.

He said: “He was driving a van large enough for a sleeping pod above the cab and was sleeping there whilst doing deliveries in the UK.

“He was having a day of ‘chilling’ and he started smoking cannabis, he was not planning on going anywhere. He then got a call from his boss to do an extra delivery.

“He was almost immediately stopped by police.

“There was no suggestion or a concern about how he was driving, just the smell.

“He completed his delivery rounds in the UK and then drove back to Lithuania where he was then fired.”

Ivlev does not hold a UK driver’s licence and magistrates deemed a 12-month disqualification from driving in the UK obsolete.

He was ordered to pay a fine of £184, a £74 surcharge and £85 in court costs.

Ivlev will still be able to drive in Lithuania.