Rajiv Luthra: Drink driving conviction after driver swap gone wrong

A Saturday night sipping scotch with friends ended in disaster for one drunk man, who swapped seats with his wife just moments before being busted for drink driving.

A Saturday night sipping scotch whiskey with friends ended in disaster for Rajiv Luthra, who swapped seats with his wife just moments before being busted for drink driving.

The 46-year-old man, of The Ponds, was sentenced on Monday at Blacktown Local Court after pleading guilty to mid-range drink driving.

Rajiv Luthra.

Court documents reveal about 12:50am on July 9 police saw a Landrover Freelander pull into the break down lane on Old Windsor Rd, Bella Vista about 150m from police performing speed enforcement duties.

Police then watched as Luthra got out of the car and swapped seats with his wife, who was sitting in the front passenger seat.

The police fact sheet stated when police officers asked Luthra why he swapped seats he said, “I wasn’t feeling well”.

He was subjected to the road side breath test and after at least four attempts he eventually returned a positive result, court documents state.

The police fact sheet stated Luthra’s wife was originally driving when they left a friend’s house at Wentworthville but then told her husband that her eyes were sore, which led to Luthra to get behind the wheel.

The Ponds’ man said the reason to then swap back was because he wasn’t feeling well, and wasn’t related to a police car with warning lights on up the road.

Luthra’s lawyer told the court the 46-year-old had only driven “a short distance” and was “regretful for his actions”. The court also heard it was Luthra’s second drink driving offence in the space of three years.

Magistrate Brian van Zuylen said drink driving was a “dreadful scourge on society” and then rattled off the thirteen driving infringements on Luthra’s record.

Luthra was disqualified from driving for six months, fined $900 and issued with a two-year alcohol interlock order.