A drug driver was found to have a lock knife on him when he was stopped by police.

Max Fredrick Simon Scott, 19, had four times the legal limit of cocaine in his blood when police pulled him over on Oxford Road, Macclesfield.

He had been stopped for having a broken taillight but officers smelled cannabis in the car. He said he’d smoked it the night before and a roadside drug test detected drugs in his system, Macclesfield Magistrates court heard.

He was arrested and a blood test at the police station showed 46 nanogrammes of cocaine per millilitre of blood, when the legal driving limit is 10 nanogrammes. The court heard he’d tried cocaine for the first time the weekend before.

At the station officers found a lock knife in his wallet. He said it was for self defence because he had been mugged in the past and didn’t think it was illegal because the blade was less than four inches.

But prosecuting, Debbie Byrne said it’s classed as an offensive weapon.

She said: “When booking him in at the station PC Buckley found a lock knife in his wallet and he was arrested for possession.

“He said he had the knife for self defence and thought it was within the legal limit of four inches but in fact that doesn’t apply. The knife is an offensive weapon because the blade can lock into position.”

Scott, of Cock Hall Lane in Sutton, pleaded guilty to driving with more than the legal limit of cocaine and possessing a blade in a public place on November 19.

Defending Stephen Rodgers said: “He pleaded guilty to both offences at the first opportunity.

“The vehicle was stopped due to a failed taillight. It’s not suggested there was impaired driving.

“He had been offered cocaine for the first time on the previous weekend and it can stay in the system for a long time. He carried the knife for two years after he was mugged while a college student. He was threatened with a knife and that had a profound effect on him.”

Scott was banned from driving for 12 months and given a 12 month community order with 150 hours unpaid work, £85 court costs and £60 victim surcharge.

Chairman of the bench Denise Rankin said: “We know you’re working on what happened to you and hope you can put that behind you and start afresh with your life.”