A DRINK driver who works for the army and who was caught in Malham following a tip off from a member of the public has been banned from driving for three years.

Although Timothy Zillessen, 61, was just one and a half times the legal limit, it was his second drink driving offence in five years, heard Skipton Magistrates Court.

Zillessen asked for his case to be adjourned when he appeared in court today (Friday) explaining that he worked for the British Army, was based in Catterick and needed time to relocate from his home on Malham Moor to somewhere closer to his place of work, but magistrates declined his request.

The court heard that police went to Malham on July 21, following information that someone was suspected of drink driving, and located Zillessen on Henside Road.

Prosecutor, Martin Butterworth, said officers noticed he smelt of alcohol and his eyes were glazed.

He provided a positive roadside breath test and was taken to the police station where he was found to have 59 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, the legal limit is 35.

Mr Butterworth said Zillessen had a previous drink driving conviction in 2017, for which he received a year’s ban. He also has a previous conviction for failing to provide a specimen for analysis, but more than 10 years ago.

Zillessen, who admitted drink driving, said he had worked for the army for 22 years, during which time he had been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan.

He said he had a drink after going to Malham to collect his daughter and had also had something to drink some time earlier at lunchtime.

He told the court he needed time to find accommodation closer to Catterick as getting there from remote Malham Moor was ‘not doable’.

“Quite where this leaves my career with the army, I don’t know,” he said.

Magistrates told Zillessen, of Malham Moor, that he was an intelligent man and would be aware of the potential dangers to himself and other road users of drink-driving.

He was banned from driving for three years and fined £500. He will also have to pay costs of £85 and a surcharge of £50.