A driver failed to complete a breath test after crashing his brand-new car into a house.

Emmanuel Mukono, 22, of Blackfriars Road in Lynn, appeared at the town’s magistrates’ court on Thursday and pleaded guilty to failing to provide a specimen for analysis.

The incident took place on October 23, when police were called to a single-vehicle crash at around 9.30pm.

Mukono had been driving along Vallingers Road when his car suddenly veered across London Road, hit a kerb, and collided with the front of a house.

When officers arrived, they could smell alcohol and noted Mukono was unsteady on his feet.

When asked to complete a breath test, officers noted he appeared to be inhaling instead of exhaling, meaning it could not be completed despite numerous attempts.

Mukono was taken to the police station for another try – but failed again.

In mitigation, solicitor Kate D’Aloia told magistrates that the defendant, a healthcare worker, had been drinking as it was his day off from work.

“He was hungry, so went to Rumbles Fish Bar. He believed he was fit to drive,” she said.

Mukono claimed he “misjudged” his control of the vehicle, which he had bought a week before, and pressed the accelerator instead of the brake, causing him to crash.

During the breath test, Ms D’Aloia said he “panicked” and did not blow correctly.

“He wasn’t refusing to cooperate – he was just confused,” she added.

Magistrates handed him a 20-month driving ban, which can be reduced by 20 weeks if he completes a drink-driving course.

Mukono will also have to pay a fine of £384, a £154 victim surcharge and £110 in court costs.

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