A beautician who used hippy crack whilst 'zig zagging' around the road in her Range Rover was spared a driving ban after claiming she got hooked on party drugs to cope with an abusive boyfriend.

Maria Sciarrillo, 24, argued a ban would affect her mobile hair and beauty business, and her ability to go shopping for her grandmother.

A court heard she was pulled over by police after another motorist spotted her holding her mobile phone in one hand and a telltale balloon in the other as they waited at a set of red traffic lights.

The witness said Sciarrillo, who was driving a black nine speed automatic Evoque, remained stationary at the lights when they turned green for up to 60 seconds. She was then seen driving away in a 'zig zag' manner on the outskirts of Chester.

When police caught up with her, she was seen to have poor lane discipline, moving between lanes and cross the centre line without indicating and driving well below the speed limit.

After she was pulled over, Sciarrillo - who runs a beauty salon in Chester - was found in possession of a cannister of nitrous oxide.

Enquiries revealed she had a previous conviction for drug driving from July 2023, after she was caught driving a Mercedes whilst under the influence of ketamine.

At Chester Magistrates' Court, Sciarrillo, who lives a £200,000 apartment in the city centre, faced a possible driving ban after she pleaded guilty to possession of class C drug nitrous oxide and driving without due care and attention.

Maria Sciarrillo, 24, pictured outside Chester Magistrates' Court, has been spared a driving ban

But JPs gave her six points on her licence and a £300 fine after she claimed she had resorted to recreational drugs after her mental health was damaged during an abusive relationship.

According to court records, a 28-year old man, from Ellesmere Port was charged with stalking Sciarillo in October 2023 after being accused of repeatedly contacting her and making unwanted appearances at her workplace but he was cleared after no evidence was offered.

He subsequently pleaded to assaulting her in another incident at Christmas last year.

Describing Sciarrillo's latest driving offence, prosecutor Chris Howard said: 'On November 23, at approximately 5.30 in the evening, a member of the public witnessed the defendant’s vehicle, a Range Rover Evoque, stopped stationary at the traffic lights.

'He states that the defendant was holding a phone in her right hand and holding a red balloon in her left hand. The lights turned green but when the witness has driven forward the defendant’s vehicle remained stationary.

'He then witnessed the defendant’s vehicle pull off and drive in a zig zag and subsequently he calls the police. Police subsequently located the vehicle and followed her for a short while.

'Travelling on a 30 mph limit road, she was driving significantly below the speed limit using poor lane discipline, moving from the right lane to the left lane and straddling the centre line using no indication. The defendant's vehicle was subsequently stopped.'