A WOMAN from Poole has been sentenced after she was caught drug driving three times within a fortnight.

Ilona Halpern, 44, of Slepe Crescent, was disqualified from driving for 18 months, given a 30-month conditional discharge and fined £210 at Poole Magistrates' Court on Thursday, November 30, after pleading guilty to three counts of driving a motor vehicle with a proportion of a specified controlled drug above the specified limit.

Halpern had been the subject of Dorset Police’s Operation Dragoon, which targets high risk road users.

She was stopped and arrested on Tuesday, August 15, in Bournemouth Road, on Thursday 24, in Ashley Road and on Friday 25 in Britannia Road.

Results from the August 15 arrest showed a litre of her blood contained 33 micrograms of cocaine - the legal limit is 10. She also had 800 micrograms of benzoylecgonine per litre of blood, which is a cocaine body-breakdown product, with the legal limit being 50. On August 24 she had five micrograms of cocaine and 519 micrograms of benzoylecgonine in her blood. There were eight micrograms of cocaine and 556 micrograms of benzoylecgonine in her system on August 25.

Police Sergeant Mark Farrow, of Dorset Police's No Excuse Team, said: “Since launching Operation Dragoon in September 2016 the No Excuse team robustly targets those drivers who pose a significant threat of causing risk or harm to both themselves and others.

“The team uses all means at its disposal to identify opportunities to deal with high risk road users including liaising with partner agencies, the DVLA and insurance companies to identify offences.”

Dorset Police regularly receives and acts upon information provided by members of public in relation to drink and drug driving.

For more information visit the Dorset Police No Excuse Facebook page.