A Blackwood man has been sentenced to 18 months in prison after lying to police five times about who was driving his speeding car, falsely blaming his ex-girlfriend and a friend living in Australia. 📱⚖️
Nathan Lee, 47, of Salway Avenue, Blackwood, was caught when cell site analysis revealed his phone was near his vehicle during one of the speeding incidents on 22nd April 2022.
Newport Crown Court heard that Lee’s car was caught speeding on five separate occasions between 2018 and 2022. Each time, he provided false details claiming he wasn’t the driver.
One person he nominated was his ex-girlfriend – but letters were sent to an address where she wasn’t living. When police tracked her down, she denied all knowledge of the speeding incidents.
Lee also nominated a childhood friend, but when police made inquiries, they discovered he was living in Australia. When a third person was nominated, it raised police suspicions and triggered the investigation.
Even after being interviewed in May 2023, Lee continued to deny he was the driver during any of the offences.
The court heard Lee has no previous convictions and works as an electrical and chemical engineer. His barrister Matthew Comer said Lee helps care for his partner and his father, who has vascular dementia and cancer.
Judge Carl Harrison said deterrent sentences are important in such cases, adding: “Perverting the course of justice is a serious offence and it almost always results in a prison sentence. Offences such as these strike at the heart of the criminal justice system.”
Lee was also disqualified from driving for 12 months upon his release from prison.
