NEW drug-drive laws have produced a positive result for police, who stopped a driver on the M4 last April.

Twenty-three-year old Mitchell Johnson, from London, was stopped for speeding while driving his red BMW westbound between junctions 15 and 16 about 3.45am on Saturday, April 18, when he was stopped by road traffic officers.

He was arrested on suspicion of driving a motor vehicle with a proportion of a specified controlled drug above the specified limit and was tested using a new roadside drug wipes kits.

He was then released on bail pending the sample being examined.

When it was, it showed he was well over the drug drive limit. He was then charged with the offence.

On Monday, September 7, Mitchell Johnson pleaded guilty to the offence and was fined £250 plus costs, as well as being disqualified from driving for 12 months.

Sergeant Warren Knight, of Wiltshire Police, said: “This case shows that you should never take drugs and drive, and with the new legislation and the drug wipes kits you have more chance of getting caught.

“Interestingly, the defendant in this case admitted that he was worried he might get caught sooner or later with these new laws.

“The message from us is perfectly clear. If you take a chance on drug driving, you will be caught.

“It’s not clever – you endanger your life and others.

“Anyone who has concerns about someone they believe may be drug driving should call the police on 101 and give as many details as you can, like vehicle details and direction of travel.

“It’s illegal to drive if either: you’re unfit to do so because you’re on legal or illegal drugs, or you have certain levels of illegal drugs in your blood even if they haven’t affected your driving.”