A MAN paralysed from the waist down drunkenly drove at 80mph by lifting and placing his legs onto the pedals, a court has heard.

It was ‘only by the grace of God’ that 20 year-old Lewis Cane Dimitri Laville didn’t kill anyone, a prosecutor said.

Vaughan Pritchard-Jones, prosecuting at Haverfordwest magistrates court, said Laville – who was left in a wheelchair following a motorcycle accident - was stopped in a Toyota Yaris near Kilgetty.

When it became obvious that Laville could not use his legs, police officers were amazed to find the car had not been adapted for disabled use.

Laville told them he would lift his legs into position and press his knees down to operate the pedals.

Mr Pritchard-Jones said: “This was a very serious offence where somebody could easily have been killed.

“This is a bizarre case as the defendant is paralysed from the waist down but he was caught doing 80 mph in a standard car.

“Mr Laville explained to police officers when interviewed how he controlled the car.

“He would pick up his right leg, put it on the accelerator and put pressure on his knee, and when he wanted to brake, he would do the same with his left leg.

“This would have been difficult enough to achieve if he had been sober, but he was over the limit.

“It was only by the grace of God that nobody was killed.”

Laville, of Powell Close, Pembroke, admitted dangerous driving, driving with excess alcohol in his blood, without insurance and not in accordance with his driving licence when he appeared before Swansea Crown Court on Friday.

Laville will be sentenced on August 14 and was granted bail meanwhile.