BALLYMENA: A 35-year-old Toome man who stole a car from outside a shop while under the influence of drugs was jailed for six months, banned from driving for three years and fined £200 after pleading guilty to taking the vehicle without authority, driving whilst unfit, and licence and insurance offences. Police tracked the Ford Fiesta to a McDonald's in Ballymena using the owner's mobile phone, which had been left inside the car, and found the defendant unsteady, slurring and in and out of consciousness.

CRAIGAVON: A 74-year-old retired Presbyterian minister from Ballyclare was handed a two-month driving ban and £250 fine after pleading guilty to speeding at 77mph in a 60mph zone on the A1 near Dromore - his fifth speeding offence in three years. David Brian Knox already had nine points on his licence at the time of the offence, recorded in October last year.

UNSPECIFIED: A man accused of strangulation and assault in a domestic abuse case was refused bail for a second time, with no further details yet available on the hearing.