A bridegroom spent his wedding night in a police cell after being arrested for drink-driving.

Jake Crank, 27, of Smith Drive, Warrington, denied that he was driving his Renault

Traffic van at Bodafon Farm, Llandudno, early on November 4, and was cleared. His breath-alcohol count was alleged to have been 83. The legal limit is 35.

Magistrates at Llandudno heard police had been alerted by a taxi driver who saw the van driven behind her along a track with the lights on full beam.

Zoe Temple said she had stopped her cab at the end of the track and told the van driver about the lights.

The driver, she said, wanted a code seemingly for his mobile phone. “He seemed really drunk,” she said in evidence. “He seemed quite oblivious to who I was and I don’t know the code to his phone. He didn’t respond to anything about the lights. He was asking for the code and I said he shouldn’t be driving.”

The van was moved out of the way of the farm entrance and the driver got out and walked back towards the farm buildings in the dark.

PC Roheryn Evans said he came across Mr Crank climbing over a barbed wire fence in his suit and waistcoat.

“The defendant was drunk. He was unsteady on his feet and eyes glazed and speech quite slurry,” the officer said.

Mr Crank was arrested for drink-driving after failing a breath test. He had a van key and mobile phone.

Cross-examined by Abdul Ali, defending, the constable agreed: ”It’s possible all the wedding party could have been wearing similar clothing.”

But PC Evans said: ”We didn’t find anyone else matching the description at the location. I was happy the person arrested was the correct person.”

Prosecutor Anouska Youds said Mr Crank made no comment to police questions.

Mr Crank, a bricklayer, told the court how he and wife Leanne had a medieval-themed wedding and they had rented a house near the farm. Taxis were called after the wedding party.

When he returned from a farm venue toilet he saw the owner and thanked him for being a wonderful host. “As I came out to the courtyard, everybody had gone.”

He decided to walk down the track, knowing his accommodation was only 200 yards from the farm entrance, but became lost in the dark.

Mr Crank said:"I saw blue lights coming towards me. I thought they were coming to help me.”

After being breathalysed he rang his new wife - his partner of nine years - to explain he was being arrested and she put down the phone. He said he had been advised by a solicitor to say nothing to police questions.

He had been wearing his hired wedding outfit. Mr Ali put it to him: "The prosecution case is that you have driven that vehicle while over the alcohol limit. What do you have to say?” Mr Crank replied: ”Not at all.”

Wife Leanne said she ran out in her dressing gown and saw the police car. “They wouldn’t give me any information,” she told the court. “I was crying as you can understand. It was my wedding night.”

Best man and bricklayer colleague Chris Coyle said he’d driven the van after a single bottle of beer. “I was wearing exactly the same as Jake except I had a hat on,” he said.

He was moving the van to the bottom of the track, to leave it there, and he was on his handsfree phone trying to get the code for the accommodation when the taxi driver approached.

He insisted his colleague hadn’t driven.

Court chairman Robert Bradley said: "We have listened to the evidence from the prosecution and defence witnesses very carefully. The prosecution has to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the defendant was the driver. In our opinion the prosecution hasn’t done this.”

The magistrate said Mr Coyle insisted on oath that he was the driver and Miss Temple said the driver wore a hat.

“All the witnesses said Mr Coyle was the only wearer of a hat that day.”

The taxi driver also didn’t smell alcohol.