Honestly Officer!

A driver escaped a fine for not having a tax disc - thanks to his parrot. John Lomax proved to police that his two-year-old African Grey Jake had clawed the disc from the holder and eaten it.

Mr Lomax took the parrot to his local police station in South Tyneside UK to prove his point - and Jake shredded letters on the reception desk.

"The officer on the desk looked a bit wary" said Mr Lomax, but when I explained he fell about laughing and some of his colleagues came out"

"Jake showed them how he likes to shuffle and eat pieces of paper. I then got a barrage of jokes about it being a feather-brained excuse and that I should be up before the beak."

Mr Lomax added: "I take Jake with me on deliveries but he can be a rascal. He had taken the disc out of its holder and chewed it to pieces. I hadn't noticed and still had an old disc at the front of the holder."

"A policeman spotted it one night and I woke to find a £30 fixed penalty notice on the windscreen. The only real culprit in this was Jake so I decided to hand him in to face justice. I also had a few chewed remnants of my disc just incase there were any doubts."

Police said: "The officers enjoyed Jake show them and the ticket was cancelled because he proved his owner's innocence"