A drink driver crashed while fleeing the cricket crowd

A man who had gone out for a meal with friends and planned to take a taxi home changed his mind after seeing a large crowd, some armed with cricket bats, on the street in Belgrave, Leicester. The crowd on Melton Road started chanting in his direction and after failing to hail an Uber, Amarveer Braich got behind the wheel of his VW Golf and drove off.

Leicester Magistrates’ Court heard how the 32-year-old security guard drove off as the crowd thronged the road, with one person hitting his windscreen with a cricket bat, causing it to crack. A Leicestershire Police officer and a PCSO, concerned about the way he was driving, weaving on the road, both tried to wave him down but he did not stop.

Later, further up Melton Road, he illegally entered the one-way Doncaster Road, colliding with another car coming in the right direction. He was arrested after he failed a roadside breath test and at a police station gave a reading of 58 microgrammes of alcohol per 100ml of breath – the legal limit is 35 microgrammes.

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During the court hearing, Braich pleaded guilty to driving while intoxicated and failing to stop when instructed to do so. The court heard that the incident happened on Sunday, June 9, after India beat Pakistan by six runs in T20 cricket.

Duncan Jefferson, representing Braich, of Peters Drive, Humberstone, Leicester, said: “It was after a T20 cricket match between India and Pakistan – there have been previous issues following these games in the past.

“My client had gone out with a group of friends for a meal and a drink. He intended to leave his vehicle there and take an Uber home.

“But when they came out there was a big, rowdy, chanting crowd and the group started singing and shouting at him. A few people were wielding cricket bats.”

He said his client was only spinning because so many people were on the road. He said: “He was trying to get out of the area because he was surrounded.

“The windshield of the vehicle was hit with a club, cracking it. He accepts he saw the various officers but said he was still concerned for his safety and continued.’

He told the court that Braich worked as a security guard at DPD in Hinckley but was likely to lose his job. Magistrates fined Braich £120, ordered him to pay £85 costs and a £48 victim surcharge and banned him from driving for 16 months.