At approximately 11:30pm on Tuesday, October 19, Police were travelling east on Fairydale Lane, Mudgee when they observed a large amount of smoke near the intersection of Fairydale Lane and Gladstone Street.

A vehicle was seen laying on its roof with the engine running and lights on. A man was then observed crawling out from the passenger window.

The 19-year-old identified himself to police and asked if he could call his girlfriend. Whilst on the phone, police inspected the vehicle and saw a dog tied to the rear tray, shaken but unharmed.

Police will allege they also observed a number of broken beer bottles in the cabin and on the ground near the upturned vehicle.

The driver was asked if he had been drinking, to which he allegedly replied 'no'.

The man was given a road-side breath test and after multiple attempts, returned a positive result to alcohol.

Police took the man and his dog back to Mudgee Police Station where he was placed into custody and participated in a breath analysis which returned a reading of 0.158 grams.

He was charged with Drive High Range PCA and his licence was immediately suspended.

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