Banned King's Lynn driver caught 'demonstrating motorbike to buyer' without a helmet, court told

A disqualified North Lynn driver was spotted riding a pit bike with no helmet on.

Malcolm Appleby was near his home in St Edmundsbury Road and was seen by a police sergeant in Lawrence Road.

As the police officer arrived in St Edmundsbury Road he saw the bike had been dumped and Appleby standing nearby trying to turn his “distinctive” jacket inside out.

Lynn Magistrates’ Court heard on Thursday that Appleby, 37, tried to deny riding it but CCTV footage proved he had.

He was on a 12-month community order imposed last October for driving while disqualified. That ban had been imposed for drug-driving in 2019.

Appleby pleaded guilty to driving while disqualified, not wearing a helmet and having no insurance.

Richard Mann, mitigating, said: “He has taken that [the disqualification] seriously in that he shut the bike in the shed and hadn’t used it since.

“He was selling it on April 14th and he was showing someone how it went.

“He’s particularly well known to the police – if he was riding around on a regular basis it would have been picked up.”

Mr Mann added: “For his pains, he’s lost the bike. The police have confiscated it and told him he’s not getting it back.”

Appleby was given a fresh 18-month community order with a drug rehabilitation requirement and up to 25 rehabilitation activity days.

He was also disqualified from driving for 18 months and ordered to pay a £95 victim surcharge.