AN Okehampton farmhand has escaped jail after being caught drink driving — for the fifth time.

Nicholas Lethbridge, of Steeping Stone Gardens, Okehampton admitted drink driving, failing to stop for a police officer and having no insurance or a licence when he appeared before Exeter Magistrates Court on Monday.

The court heard that Nicholas Lethbridge, 28, was more than three times over the drink drive limit when he twice raced away from pursuing police patrols who were looking for him.

Although his girlfriend in the passenger seat of the red Renault Scenic told him to stop, Lethbridge drove through country roads to lose the chasing police cars during the night time pursuit in September.

Prosecutor Philip Sewell told the court that police lost sight of him on a B road and then waited at his home in Okehampton. When he arrived a policeman told him to stop but he reversed back and raced away.

The pursuit ended when he crashed the car into a hedge. He clambered out of the driver's window and ran off but was caught by police.

Mr Sewell said this was Lethbridge's fifth drink drive offence and he had just completed a 46 month ban when the latest incident happened.

Lethbridge told the court: 'I am an idiot when I have had a drink — I can't stop at one drink.'

He said he had twice been sent on drink drive rehab courses by the court on previous occasions and was supposed to have reapplied for his licence.

The court's legal adviser told the magistrates that a fifth drink drive was 'exceptional'.

The JPs told him: 'This was your fifth drink drive offence. That's five times you've put people's lives at risk. You have heard this before but don't be tempted to drive a car or you will end up in prison.'

The magistrates jailed him for 20 weeks but suspended it for two years and gave him a four year ban, told him to pay £165 in costs and told him to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work.