Drink-driver crashed into Sunderland nursing home before fleeing on foot - then claimed he had been robbed

A drink-driver crashed into the wall of a nursing home and fled on foot - claiming he had been robbed, a court heard.

Giles Petrie, 49, left a scene of destruction when he ploughed his red Suzuki Swift into bricks outside Ashwood Court in Suffolk Street, Hendon.

Witnesses watched as injured Petrie, of Newtonmore, Sourmilk Hill, staggered away but pinpointed his location to police on Monday, September 11, 2023.

After his arrest, he made to police what prosecutor Gurjot Kaur described as a “significant statement”, that “he was robbed of £600 and drank and drove”.

Ms Kaur told magistrates in South Tyneside: “A call was made to police about a report of a collision at Ashwood Court care home.

“A red motor vehicle had crashed into the front wall, causing extensive damage. When police arrived, the driver of the vehicle wasn’t there.

“Members of the public instructed police about where he had gone, and they found him nearby. He was visibly upset and had a cut to his lip and said he needed help.

“Because his airbag had deployed, he was taken to hospital. On the way, he made a significant statement.

“There is some brief CCTV of the defendant driving down a road where he fails to give way at a junction and narrowly misses a bus.

“He gave a blood sample at hospital for alcohol. The aggravating factor is that he was involved in an accident where he hit the care home’s wall.”

Petrie pleaded guilty to drink-driving, failing to stop after an accident and driving without due care and attention.

He has 16 previous convictions from 27 offences, the last in 2022 for possession of an offensive weapon for which he was fined.

His blood reading showed 210mg of alcohol, against a legal limit of 80mg.

Gerry Armstrong, defending, told magistrates they would require a report before they could pass sentence.

Magistrates handed Petrie an interim driving ban and adjourned the case for a pre-sentence mental health report.

He will be sentenced at the same court on Wednesday, April 24.