{"id":542388,"date":"2026-07-10T07:59:32","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T07:59:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/542388\/"},"modified":"2026-07-10T07:59:32","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T07:59:32","slug":"concerned-motorists-help-gardai-catch-heavily-intoxicated-hgv-driver-in-kildare","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/542388\/","title":{"rendered":"Concerned motorists help gardai catch &#8216;heavily intoxicated&#8217; HGV driver in Kildare"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Officers in Kildare received numerous reports from concerned motorists<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Garda\u00ed found alcohol stashed in the vehicle \" loading=\"eager\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/742786992_1561809145330455_2104379151881775002_njpeg.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p aria-label=\"Garda\u00ed found alcohol stashed in the vehicle \" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Garda\u00ed found alcohol stashed in the vehicle (Image: Garda\u00ed )<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">A \u201cheavily intoxicated\u201d HGV driver was arrested by Garda\u00ed in Kildare this week.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Officers attached to the Kildare Roads Policing Unit were on patrol this week when they received numerous reports from concerned motorists about a HGV. Officers sprang into action and intercepted the driver of this HGV after it was observed being driven dangerously on the M7.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">The driver was found to be heavily intoxicated and was arrested for Dangerous Driving and Driving Under the Influence of an Intoxicant. <a aria-label=\"Garda\u00edLink opens in a new tab.\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.irishmirror.ie\/all-about\/gardai\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\">Garda\u00ed<\/a> posted a picture of a bottle of Absolut Vodka stashed in the vehicle.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">At Naas Garda Station, the driver refused to provide a breath specimen and was subsequently charged with Refusing to Provide a Blood Specimen, along with three counts of Dangerous Driving. The driver is due to appear before the courts in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"The HGV was seized \" loading=\"lazy\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/741705105_1016674401275401_6432022349034481487_njpeg.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p aria-label=\"The HGV was seized \" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">The HGV was seized (Image: Garda\u00ed\/Kildare )<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">A Garda spokesperson said: \u201cRefusing to provide a specimen is a serious offence and carries penalties of a fine of up to \u20ac5,000, up to six months&#8217; imprisonment, and a mandatory four-year driving disqualification upon conviction.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cThe HGV was also seized under Section 109 of the Road Traffic Act. The registered owner must now apply to the Court for its return.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cDriving while intoxicated is never a mistake &#8211; it is a deliberate decision that puts innocent road users at risk. Thanks to the vigilance of members of the public who reported this vehicle, Garda\u00ed were able to intervene before lives were lost.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cIf you see dangerous or suspected intoxicated driving, report it immediately. Your call could save a life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: <a aria-label=\"Sign up hereLink opens in a new tab.\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.irishmirror.ie\/newsletter-preference-centre\/?view=Solus&amp;mailingListId=39e53cb8-b266-4e33-8d00-e9f7a38f420c&amp;utm_source=solusarticle\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\">Sign up here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Officers in Kildare received numerous reports from concerned motorists Garda\u00ed found alcohol stashed in the vehicle (Image: Garda\u00ed&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":542389,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[45,1115,7782,61,60,43],"class_list":["post-542388","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-an-garda-siochana","tag-crime","tag-gardai","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/542388","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=542388"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/542388\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/542389"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=542388"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=542388"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=542388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}