By Dave Lord

A PERTHSHIRE postman who crashed his car claimed he failed a breath test due to a “unique” medical condition which caused him to store alcohol in his neck like a human pelican.

William Harvey told Perth Sheriff Court he gave an artificially high reading because a “pocket” in his throat stored alcohol prior to the breath test.

During his trial the 45-year-old insisted the bizarre medical complaint was responsible for him appearing to be nearly three times over the legal limit.

Harvey, of Appin Place, Aberfeldy, was yesterday found guilty of drink driving and banned from the road for 18 months.

He was also fined £600.

Harvey had denied that on September 27 he crashed his car after driving with excess alcohol (99 mics, the legal limit is 35).

He claimed he choked during a panic attack, which caused wine he had drunk earlier to be brought up into the “balloon-like” sac in his neck.

Harvey said this caused him to give an artificially high reading after being questioned by police.

Perth Sheriff Court heard how the postman was seen speeding off in the opposite direction after being passed by a police car.

Harvey admitted he then crashed his car into a ditch and was climbing out of the window when police arrived.

He also accepted his breath smelled of alcohol when he was questioned by police.

However, he told the court he had since been diagnosed with “laryngocele” and had undergone an operation to have a sac the size of a tennis ball removed.

The accused said he had been driving home after visiting family members when he decided to stop by a river to drink some wine.

However, he insisted he had only drunk half a bottle —and claimed the recorded breath reading of 99 mics was artificially high.

Harvey claimed he had been contemplating suicide prior to the incident and suffered a panic attack, which caused him to vomit up some of the contents of his stomach—including the wine.

“The balloon in my throat was being filled up by mucous coming up from my lungs and the contents of my stomach,” he told the court.

“We all have it, but in most people it lies dormant.

“Anything I cough or choke up can inflate it and if I keep myself calm it will slowly deflate.

“I walked about with a time bomb in my throat but it was removed in October. It was described as the size of a tennis ball.”

Harvey said he was “definitely not” almost three times over the drink drive limit.

“I have always disputed the level of the breath test,” he said.

“I just could not believe it from the quantity I had drunk.

“I had a feeling there was a pool of fluid at the back of my throat...I had choked violently and had a coughing fit.

“I felt I was passing out and was going to choke to death.”

Harvey told the court he was drinking white wine at the riverside and panicked when he saw the police car driving past.

He drove off in the opposite direction, but promptly crashed the car.

Sheriff Lindsay Foulis was clearly not convinced that some kind of “medical miracle” had caused Harvey to give the high reading.

“The crown case was largely agreed and unless the evidence raises a reasonable doubt in my mind a conviction follows,” he said.

“It was for you to raise a reasonable doubt...but I reject the explanations given.

“Quite simply there is no evidence of sufficient quality to support the claims—it is all ifs, buts and maybes.

“You were well over twice the legal limit and in all the circumstances I will disqualify you from driving for 18 months and you will also be fined £600,” the sheriff added.

The court heard Harvey will lose his job as a postman due to the conviction.