Drink-drive priest blames medicine

A Roman Catholic priest has blamed a home-made cold remedy after he was caught drink driving.

Father Andre Traczyk, 49, was spotted by police driving a car which swerved across a road and onto a pavement.

He was breath-tested and was found to be nearly three times the drink-drive limit.

Traczyk, of Stretford, Greater Manchester, claimed he did not normally touch alcohol but that a friend had given him a hot honey and lemon drink mixed with alcohol.

He was stopped by police on 16 December in the Whalley Range area of Manchester.

'Impaired judgement'

Traczyk told Manchester magistrates he did not realise the cold remedy had contained alcohol or that he was unfit to drive.

His solicitor Richard Silver said: "His judgment was impaired by the combination of medication and alcohol and this led to him doing something he would never normally dream of."

Traczyk, who is Polish but has lived in the UK for 17 years, admitted driving under the influence of alcohol.

He was sentenced to one day in jail but released immediately due to the time he had already spent in the cells.

He was also banned from driving for 30 months.