England international John Stones has been convicted of a speeding offence and handed a significant court bill, according to The Independent.
The Inter Milan defender was caught driving his Range Rover at 43mph in a 30mph zone near his Cheshire property in May. Stones admitted to being the driver when initially contacted by Cheshire Police.
However, he failed to respond to a crucial second letter. This document offered him the chance to pay a fixed penalty and keep the offence out of court.
This missed correspondence escalated the case to the Single Justice Procedure. A magistrate issued the defender with four penalty points and ordered him to pay a £666 fine.
Stone must also cover £120 in costs and a £266 victim surcharge.
In what was a huge coincidence, the missed letter occurred because Stones was away representing England at the World Cup.
John Stones in action during the Serie A match between FC Internazionale and Udinese. (Photo by Claudio Villa/Getty Images)
He wrote a letter to Warrington Magistrates Court to explain his prolonged absence from his Cheshire residence.
Stones fully accepted the speeding charge in his written correspondence. He explained that a combination of international duty, a summer holiday, and a major transfer caused the unfortunate administrative error.
”Nothing to say about the speeding,” Stones wrote to the court. “The reason I am only responding to the offence now is because I represent our country for football and so I have not been home and seen any post. I sent off my letter on the 28th May to give my details, I went off to join England. We were there until the 19th July.”
With the legal matter now completely resolved, Stones can focus fully on the next chapter of his career as he starts a new adventure in Italy.
