Laxey man accuses police of being 'petty' after car tax offences

"It's not the crime of the century is it" - that's what a Laxey man told a court this week after admitting failing to tax two of his vehicles.

30-year-old Mark Philip Galbraith, of Minorca Hill, represented himself during a hearing at Douglas Courthouse on Thursday.
 
He pleaded guilty to two counts of having no vehicle tax.

Police stopped Galbraith on Woodbourne Road in Douglas on January 10th after noting his wagon's tax had expired in August 2014. 

Officers also found one of his trucks parked unattended on Mooragh Promenade in Ramsey on February 19th - that tax had expired a year before. 

Galbraith told the court he'd lost his driving licence due to previous motoring offences and had left the wagon parked there because he couldn't legally drive it. 

Accusing the police of being "petty" he said "I know it's wrong but you can always backdate your tax". 

Sentencing Galbraith Magistrates handed him a 12-month conditional discharge meaning he faces no penalty as long as he remains crime free for the next year. 

They told him "It's a law that applies to you the same as it applies to anyone else - you can't just brush it to one side".