A FORMER soldier turned to drink after a comrade was shot dead beside him during a harrowing tour of duty in Northern Ireland, a court heard yesterday.

Harrogate magistrates were told how George Lumby was arrested for his sixth drink-driving offence since 1990 when he walked into the town's police station and confessed to the theft of a car.

Stephanie Waite, prosecuting, said Lumby, 49, had spotted a VW Golf parked in Harrogate with its keys hanging from the door.

He took it and drove it for ten days - twice filling it up with petrol he did not pay for.

When he walked into the police station to make his confession, officers noticed he had been drinking and Lumby later admitted he had consumed eight cans of lager. A breath test showed he was twice the drink-drive limit.

Lumby, of Bramham Drive, Harrogate pleaded guilty to drink-driving, car theft, driving while disqualified and without insurance, and two counts of making off without paying for £30 worth of petrol.

In mitigation Richard Buchanan said Lumby's "silly offences" had put his life at a crossroads but he deserved credit for giving himself up and confessing his crimes.

He said Lumby's drinking began after he saw a colleague shot in the head while sitting beside him in a personnel carrier during a harrowing 18 months in Northern Ireland.

He said his latest arrest had hardened Lumby's resolve to do something about his drink problem.

Court chairman Judith Thomas bailed Lumby to a probation hostel until May 4 while his suitability for more permanent residence under the terms of a community rehabilitation order it assessed.