FOUR drivers have been fined for blue badge parking offences since the New Year. The drivers were fined over £2,500 in total.
“I had no change on me, and I have never done this before”
Andrew Roberts, 42, from Newcastle Under Lyme pleaded guilty to charges of using a deceased person's blue badge and was fined £460, along with court costs and a victims of crimes surcharge of £441. Roberts' grandmother had been the actual badge holder but had passed away.
Asad Husain Jafri, 37, from Chorlton was fined £525 after failing to attend court when summoned and also ordered to pay £309 in court costs and a victims of crime surcharge. He used his mother's blue parking badge and said simply he had “needed to park for a few hours” when questioned.
Safoora Begum Khan, 53, from Chorlton pleaded guilty to abusing a blue badge and was fined £100 and ordered to pay £115 in costs and a victims of crime surcharge. She had changed her husband's expired blue badge because "it was out of date."
Mordechai Feldman, 34, from London was fined £170 after pleading guilty and also had to pay £458 in costs and a victims of crime surcharge. He used his daughter's expired blue badge and said “I had no change on me, and I have never done this before” when questioned about the offence.
Last year 83 people were caught and successfully prosecuted for blue badge offences and fined almost £50,000 in total.
