RADIO AND TV presenter Baz Ashmawy was fined €350 and given a road ban yesterday after he pleaded guilty to drink-driving.
He had been arrested following a minor crash with a stationary vehicle while he was parking his own car in Rathmines in south Dublin last month.
Ashmawy (35) with an address at Grosvenor Square in Rathmines, appeared in court yesterday and pleaded guilty to drink-driving contrary to section 49 of the Road Traffic Act, at Upper Rathmines Road, on February 25th last.
Defence counsel Martin Dully told Judge Hugh O’Donnell at Dublin District Court that prosecuting Garda Anna Masterson had been notified in advance of the hearing that his client was pleading guilty.
Garda Masterson told Judge O’Donnell that Ashmawy’s level was 51 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath and confirmed that he had no prior criminal convictions. The limit is 35 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath.
Garda Masterson agreed with Mr Dully that the defendant was “extremely co-operative” and had caused “minor material damage”.
Mr Dully told the judge that his client, who stood up at the defendant’s bench but remained silent, was “very embarrassed about this situation”. He asked the court to note that Ashmawy “wishes to apologise and is rather ashamed”.
Judge O’Donnell said in light of the early guilty plea and level of alcohol involved he was fining Ashmawy €350. The 2fm presenter was given “three months to pay” or else he would be jailed for “14 days in default”. The judge also banned him from driving for two years and one day, and endorsed his licence.
Ashmawy declined to comment to reporters after the case.
On March 4th last, RTÉ suspended him for one month following the drink-driving incident.