DWI 2017

Police: DUI, Drug Charges for Man Found Driving, Drinking and With Cocaine

Police: DUI for Woman, 24, Driving Fast Near Paving Crews

Police: DUI for Darien Man After Crash Sends Three to Hospital

Police: DUI for Woman, 48, After 1 AM Arrest on Tokeneke Road

Police: DUI for Darien Man After Traffic Violations on Tokeneke Road

Police: DUI for Vespa Rider, 34, Already Wanted on DUI Charge in Florida

Police: DUI for Man, 28, with Expired Registration, Illegal Drug Under Seat

Police: DUI Charge for Darien Man, 35, Speeding Over 90 MPH on Highway

Police: DUI for Man Found Passed Out Behind the Wheel of a Running Car at 8:45 AM

Darien Man, 36, Accused of DUI, Driving Offenses in New Canaan

Police: DUI for Man, 23, Who Believed He Was in New Canaan

Public Safety

By David Gurliacci | December 11, 2017

Public Safety

By David Gurliacci | October 23, 2017

Public Safety

By David Gurliacci | October 2, 2017

Public Safety

By David Gurliacci | July 6, 2017

Public Safety

By David Gurliacci | July 3, 2017

Public Safety

By David Gurliacci | June 29, 2017

Public Safety

By David Gurliacci | June 27, 2017

Public Safety

By David Gurliacci | June 26, 2017

Public Safety

By David Gurliacci | June 13, 2017

Public Safety

By David Gurliacci | June 2, 2017

Public Safety

By David Gurliacci | May 22, 2017

Night Police Lights CT State Police on Facebook March 30-17 uploaded 06-20-17

A 26-year-old man driving downtown around 1 a.m. Saturday was stopped by police for a traffic violation, then they found he was intoxicated and had cocaine, police said. Darien police gave this account of what happened, including accusations not proven in court:

At about 1:06 a.m., Nicolas Panagiotopoulos of Glenbrook Road in Stamford was driving west (toward Stamford) on the Post Road. He didn’t stop for the traffic light, then flashing red, at the intersection of the road with the exit ramp for Interstate 95 North (near the car dealership). A police officer saw the gray 2016 Volkswagen Jetta go through the traffic light at what the officer thought was a high rate of speed and stopped the car. When Panagiotopoulos told the officer that he was coming from a Norwalk restaurant, the officer could see that the driver’s eyes were glassy and bloodshot, and the officer could smell the strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from inside the car.

As crews worked on the Post Road overnight paving project at 2:45 a.m., Friday, a 24-year-old woman intoxicated woman drove past them, at a high rate of speed, into a closed part of the roadway, police said. Darien police described what happened with this further account, including accusations not proven in court:

The woman, who lives in Norwalk, was driving a gray 2017 Toyota Rav4 SUV east on Route 1 near its intersection with Old Kings Highway South when a police officer paced the vehicle at 45 mph. The sport utility vehicle crossed over the divider line into a closed part of the roadway, and the officer conducted a traffic stop. In talking with the driver, the officer immediately smelled an alcoholic beverage coming from her and asked her to perform field sobriety tests. She didn’t perform them to a proper standard and was charged with driving while under the influence.

A 38-year-old Darien man was charged with driving while under the influence after his car crossed over into the opposite lane and hit a compact SUV. The crash sent three occupants of that vehicle, including a 10-year-old, to the hospital. The arrested man had in his blood between three and four times the legal amount of alcohol for a driver when he was given a breath test more than an hour after the accident was reported, according to police. Darien police described what happened with this account, including accusations not proven in court:

Shortly before 5:23 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 25 (when the incident was reported to police), Michael Sheppeard, 38, of Stanton Road was driving a tan 2008 Ford Expedition on Old Kings Highway South.

After a police officer saw a sport utility vehicle cross over the double yellow line on Tokeneke Road at about 1 a.m., the 48-year-old woman behind the wheel was charged with driving while under the influence of alcohol, police said. Darien police described what happened with this account, including accusations not proven in court:

At about 1 a.m. on Monday, June 26, the officer, who was watching traffic, saw the vehicle, a green 2016 Subaru Forester headed in the direction of Norwalk. After seeing it cross over the yellow lines, the officer pulled over the SUV near Five Mile River Road. The driver told the officer that she was coming from Ernie’s bar in downtown Darien. She was given field sobriety tests, which she failed, and she was charged with driving while under the influence and failure to stay on the right side of the road.

A Darien man who failed to stop for a stop sign, then drove over the double yellow line on Tokeneke Road at 2:28 a.m. on Sunday was found to have been drinking and was charged with driving while under the influence of alcohol, police said. Police described what happened with this account, including accusations not proven in court:

A police officer saw a gray 1998 Honda Accord leave the Interstate 95 Exit 12 ramp and turn right onto Tokeneke Road without stopping for the stop sign. The car crossed over the double yellow line, into the oncoming traffic lane, and the officer had the vehicle stop near the intersection of Tokeneke Road and Driftwood Lane. __________

See also: Mother of Teen Charged with Failing to Halt Alcohol Possession at Daughter’s 18th Birthday Party (July 3)

__________

The officer noticed the smell of alcohol on the breath of the 44-year-old driver. The man told the officer that all he had to drink that night was a single Heineken beer.

A police officer saw a man on a black 2015 Vespa scooter fail to stop for a red light, and then another red light, then swerve toward oncoming traffic twice at about 2:30 a.m. Saturday in downtown Darien, police said. The rider not only was intoxicated, police said: He was also wanted by police in Florida on charges of violating probation and driving while under the influence — and the police there wanted to extradite him. Police described the incident with this account, including accusations not proven in court:

The officer saw the scooter fail to stop for lights on the Post Road at its intersections with Tokeneke Road and Center Street. The Vespa was stopped at the intersection of the Post Road and Duffy’s Lane, about a mile and a half to the west. The officer saw the driver, 37-year-old Julian Santa of Norwalk, wasn’t wearing eye protection, as the law requires.

A 28-year-old driver was charged with driving while under the influence after he was stopped shortly after 2 a.m. when police saw that his license registration had expired, Darien police said. Police also said the man had PCP under the front passenger seat. Darien police described what happened with this account (including accusations not proven in court):

A police officer saw a blue 2000 Ford Excursion on Old Kings Highway South at about 2:11 a.m. on Tuesday, June 20. The license of the SUV had expired in September 2015. The Excursion got onto the northbound-traffic lanes of Interstate 95, and the officer stopped the vehicle at the Darien North rest stop.

When a 35-year-old Darien man later charged with driving while under the influence turned onto the Interstate 95 on ramp from Tokeneke Road, he

didn’t use his turn signal,
drove over the white fog line,
swerved between lanes and
sped faster than 90 mph on the highway,

according to police. Here’s the rest of the account (which includes accusations not proven in court) that Darien police gave describing the incident:

At about 12:46 a.m., a police officer saw a white 2016 Mazda CX traveling east on Tokeneke Road turn without signaling onto the I-95 on ramp. The car turned so fast onto the entrance ramp that it shifted left and passed over the white fog line for a while, before the driver corrected and got back into the lane. The driver sped faster than 90 mph and swerved between lanes before taking Exit 10, where the officer had it stop. The driver smelled of an alcoholic beverage, and his bloodshot eyes were glassy.

Randolfo Ruiz-Lopez arrest photo mug shot 06-14-17

A 38-year-old man was charged with drunk driving Saturday after passers-by found him at 8:45 a.m., unconscious behind the wheel of a running car stopped at an angle on Woodway Road, police said. Darien police described the incident with this account, including accusations not proven in court:

Two witnesses told police they found Randolfo Ruiz-Lopez of Stamford passed out behind the wheel of a tan 1998 Toyota Camry stopped near the side of the road. The witnesses said they were able to put the car in park and turn it off, then rouse Ruiz-Lopez. He told police that the car had just stopped, and denied that he had been asleep at the wheel. Police officers smelled a strong odor of alcohol on his breath.

A 36-year-old Darien man was charged late Wednesday night with driving while under the influence and committing various driving offenses in New Canaan, according to police in that town. New Canaan police described what happened with this account, including accusations not proven in court:

At about 11:45 p.m. on Wednesday, May 31, an officer on patrol saw a vehicle traveling south on Main Street as the vehicle cross over the double-yellow line. ___________

— This article, in somewhat different form, was previously published by NewCanaanite.com. ___________

The vehicle also appeared to be traveling to close to a car in front of it as it traveled up Farm Road, the report said. The officer stopped the vehicle near Village Drive. When speaking with the driver, the officer smelled alcohol on his breath.

« August 2022 »

A driver smelling of alcohol told the Darien police officer who stopped him near Interstate 95 that he lived just around the corner — on Snowberry Lane in New Canaan, the town where the driver thought he already was, police said. Police described the incident with this account, including accusations not proven in court:

At 2:38 a.m., the police officer saw a van fail to stop before it turned left onto Tokeneke Road from the Interstate 95 Exit 12 ramp. The officer stopped the van near the intersection of Old Kings Highway South and Locust Hill Road. The driver, a 23-year-old New Canaan man, told the officer that he didn’t see any stop sign. The officer smelled a very strong odor of alcohol coming from inside the van and saw that the driver had glassy, red eyes and difficulty focusing his attention as he spoke.