Michail Antonio banned from driving for six months over Lamborghini offence

Footballer Michail Antonio has been banned from driving for six months for failing to identify the driver of his Lamborghini when it was suspected of involvement in a motoring offence in central London.The former West Ham striker, 36, was charged by the Metropolitan Police with failing to assist an investigation when his car had been spotted being driven without due care and attention late at night in Pall Mall last November.Antonio told Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court that he was not the driver, having allowed his Lamborghini to be borrowed by his cousin while he was away in Manchester.The star said that he did not received the initial police letter, asking for the driver’s identity, suggesting it was lost in the post.And he gave evidence that he was “shocked” to discover, in February, that he had been charged with a failure to identify the driver.Antonio told the court he left his cousin to reply to the charge, and believes he then provided details of the guilty driver.Ex-West Ham United footballer Michail Antonio leaves Uxbridge Magistrates' CourtPABut after a short trial, Antonio was found guilty by magistrates of failing to give information relating to the identification of the driver of a vehicle when required.Magistrate Ian Comfort handed Antonio a six-month driving ban and ordered that he pay a fine and court costs totalling £2,050.The magistrates concluded they were sure the police letter had been sent to the footballer’s home, and Antonio had failed to respond according to the legal requirements.Antonio already had six penalty points on his licence, after being convicted of driving without insurance in July 2025.He was given a further six points on Thursday, leading to an automatic six-month disqualification, and he was ordered to pay a £1,000 fine, £650 in prosecution costs, and a £400 victim surcharge.Read MoreWhen leaving court, the footballer was offered a Covid mask by court security so that he could hide his face from waiting photographers.Antonio was the registered keeper of the Lamborghini Urus when it was involved in an incident on Pall Mall at 12.38am on November 5 last year.The Met wrote to him on November 12 last year to seek the identity of the driver, and commenced a criminal prosecution when it did not receive a response.Giving evidence, Antonio said he was visiting his children in Manchester from November 3 to 6 last year, and said he had handed over the keys to the Lamborghini to Tarique Josephs who runs a company loaning out cars.He said he called Mr Josephs in February after receiving a notice of the criminal charge.“I was in shock”, Antonio said, of his reaction to finding out he was being prosecuted. “How can I be charged with something I haven’t done?“This is the first time I was aware of that.”He gave evidence that Mr Josephs “rents my car every now and then”, telling the court: “When someone calls up for a Lamborghini, he will call me and say can I use your Lamborghini.“I worked out he had the car at the time, he has come across to me to collect the forms, and said he would send the details.”Mr Josephs told the court he filled out the response to the prosecution, entering a not guilty plea and giving a brief explanation that the car had been on loan.Michail Antonio scored 68 goals in 268 Premier League matches for West HamGetty ImagesWhen questioned why he had not mentioned the other driver’s details on the form, he claimed to have included a copy of the loan agreement in the same envelope when posting it back.Antonio’s girlfriend, Sunita Bains, gave evidence that she handles the mail to their £2.2 million Buckinghamshire mansion, and said she does not believe the initial police letter ever arrived.The footballer is also accused of failing to respond to West Midlands police over a speeding offence in the Lamborghini. He is set to stand trial on that charge next March.Antonio’s footballing career was derailed in December 2024 when he crashed a Ferrari in Epping Forest in Essex, suffering a badly-broken leg.The star, a Jamaican international, spent three weeks in hospital and was out of the game recovering from his injuries for more than half a year.Antonio, who has played for Reading, Sheffield Wednesday, and Nottingham Forest, became West Ham’s top scorer in the Premier League during 10 years at the club.He left in summer 2025, joining Al-Sailiya in Qatar where he made four appearances and then signed for Watford on a free transfer earlier this month.