USING a mobile phone at the wheel has cost a County Durham man hundreds of pounds in court.

Sean Mulkerrin, of Collingwood Street, Coundon, was charged with using a handheld mobile phone / device while driving on the B6287 in Bishop Auckland on August 22 last year.

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He pleaded guilty to the offence and was sentenced in his absence by magistrates sitting at Newton Aycliffe on Thursday, April 21.

They fined Mulkerrin £146 and ordered him to pay £110 court costs,

A £34 victim surcharge was also added, meaning the total he has to pay is £290.

The 32-year-old also had his driving licence endorsed with six points.

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