A DRINK-DRIVER who swigged from a can of lager at the wheel while the man whose car he took without permission was sat next to him has been jailed.

Jamie James was blasted by Judge Tom Crowther QC who told him: “You are a man approaching 30 who is behaving like a problem teenager.”

The defendant, of Bryn Pica, Tredegar, pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicle taking, driving while above the legal alcohol limit, driving whilst disqualified and with no insurance.

He committed the offences whilst at the wheel of a Ford Fiesta belonging to Daniel Burston who described his ordeal in a victim impact statement as “terrifying”.

He was driven by James, 28, through Tredegar and Ebbw Vale on September 6, 2017, the defendant ignoring his pleas for him to stop the car.

Prosecutor Christopher Evans told Cardiff Crown Court: “Mr Burston was visiting a friend in Tredegar and was leaving when he was approached by Mr James, a man he knew as ‘Meatball’.

“He told Mr Burston, ‘Give me your car keys, I need to buy some cheap fags.’

“The defendant then ripped the keys out of his hands and got in the Fiesta while another man got into the rear of the vehicle.

“He was frightened and could smell alcohol on Mr James’ breath and his speech was slurred.”

Mr Evans said Mr Burston got into his Fiesta before the defendant “drove off at speed”.

He told the court that James had stopped at a shop in Pennant Street, Ebbw Vale, kept the keys he had stolen and went in.

Mr Evans added: “The defendant came back with six cans of lager, opened one and started drinking it whilst driving.”

The court heard how James then drove at 40mph in a 20mph zone, was on the wrong side of the road whilst negotiating an S-bend, nearly collided with a parked car and passed children who were playing in the road.

Mr Evans said he then told Mr Burston to get out of the car before he drove off.

The police were called and the Fiesta was later found in Brynmawr’s Bryn Farm Estate.

The defendant was arrested and a breath test showed he had 88mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood in his system.

He was two-and-half-times over the legal limit which is 35mg.

Mr Evans said James had 21 convictions for 41 offences between 2008 and 2016, which included the dangerous driving off an off-road motorcycle, driving with excess alcohol, theft of a motorcycle, theft of 100 litres of fuel from a lorry and a prison sentence in 2016 for the theft of a trailer.

He added that Mr Burston had to replace his children’s car seats because they smelled of alcohol and that a weekend holiday was “spoiled” because of a delay to a check of his car.

Sarah Waters, representing the defendant, said: “The best mitigation is that he pleaded guilty and avoided a trial.

“He also wishes to apologise to the victim for the stress he has caused him.”

She added that the defendant has a “drink problem”.

Judge Crowther jailed James for 12 months and banned him from driving for three years and two months.