sent to jail for more than 13 months yesterday.

Ron Edwards, of Happy Valley Road, repeatedly refused to pay a stack of fines imposed for various traffic offences.

A warrant was finally issued for his arrest after it was revealed that he owed more than $4,000 in fines.

And yesterday acting Senior Magistrate Edward King finally decided that enough was enough and sent Edwards to prison for 409 days.

Wading through a stack of paperwork, Mr. King listed ten fines that had been imposed up to 18 months ago which Edwards had failed to pay.

A further nine offences have still to go to court.

Although Edwards claimed he could pay $1,000 immediately Mr. King said: "Today is the day of reckoning -- you treat this court with utter contempt, man.

"You owe the Government a lot of money. There is no way you are walking out of here today a free man. If you can't pay the fine, don't do the crime.''