Dundee United midfielder Morgaro Gomis has been fined £700 at Dundee’s Justice of the Peace Court after admitting a hit-and-run collision with a parked car.
The 25-year-old smashed into the car in the Overgate Centre car park in December, but then drove off without reporting the accident to police.
He was caught on CCTV, the court heard yesterday, and was traced later.
Gomis, who lives in the City Quay area of Dundee, admitted that on December 10 last year, in the Overgate Centre car park, Bank Street, he collided with a car and, an accident having occurred, he failed to report it to police.
He further admitted that, in the same place and on the same day, he drove carelessly and collided with a car, damaging both vehicles.
The footballer, who did not appear personally in court, was driving on a Senegalese licencewhen the incident took place, depute fiscal Kirsty Anderson told the court, although he also has a UK provisional licence.
She said the owner of the parked car contacted police after he returned to the car park at around 5pm to discover his vehicle had been damaged.
A plastic light fitting was lying on the ground. When officers attended, they found silver paint on the complainer’s blue car.
The police officers reviewed the CCTV footage which showed the footballer’s car colliding with the complainer’s.HiredChecks revealed Gomis had hired the vehicle and, when he was contacted, he admitted responsibility.
Solicitor Campbell Donaldson, who pleaded guilty on the footballer’s behalf, said Gomis had returned to his car on level five of the car park.
He drove out of his space and collided with the other car. He got out of his vehicle and looked at both cars before driving off.
The solicitor added that damage to both cars had been dealt with by insurance companies.
When Gomis was asked why he didn’t report the collision, he said he looked at the blue car and didn’t see any damage to it but saw only damage to the car he was driving.
Justice Les Livingstone imposed seven penalty points on his UK provisional licence, which the clerk pointed out already showed three points for a speeding offence.
A spokesman for Dundee United said the court case was a private matter and not something the club would comment upon.
Gomis will not take to the field when his team plays Motherwell in the Scottish Cup quarter-final replay next week as he is suspended after picking up two cautions in previous rounds.