Laois Gardai have issued a warning to those who are driving in the county while under the influence of cocaine.
On Saturday, Gardai detected a driver in Portarlington who was travelling at 141km/h in a 50 km/h zone.
When pulled over by the roads policing unit, the driver was discovered to be under the influence of cocaine.
Gardai said: “Speed check today in freezing conditions near Portarlington.
“Icy roads. Low grip. Low margins for error. And then this guy appears.
“A Volkswagon Golf detected travelling at 141km/h in a 50km/h zone.
“Behind the wheel. Yet another driver under the influence of cocaine.”
Gardai confirmed that, rather shockingly, they had detected at least one driver in every day of 2026 under the influence of the drug.
They said: “And here’s the line that matters. Every single day in Laois so far this year someone has been arrested by Laois RPU for driving under the influence of cocaine.
“Cocaine doesn’t make you a better driver. It just makes you more likely to be stopped.
“Or worse, hurt someone who did nothing wrong.”
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