PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla.-- According to police, a St. Petersburg man was arrested and charged with DUI after crashing and flipping his car on the Skyway Bridge early Saturday.
- Man crashes and flips car on Skyway
- Officers observed several beer cans surrounding the car
- Bejamin Arntzen, 26, charged with DUI
When officers arrived on the scene after the crash they saw several Coors Light beer cans both open and unopened around the overturned vehicle.
One officer stated that he observed the driver exit the vehicle. The other officer identified the driver and owner of the Mazda as 26-year-old Benjamin Arntzen.
The officer stated that he observed Arntzen swaying and smelled a strong odor of alcohol emitting from his breath. He said that when he spoke to Arntzen his speech was slurred.
Arntzen told the officer that he had a cooler of beer in his car that was now on the roadway. He admitted to driving the vehicle at the time of the crash and said he was on his way home from work.
The officer transported Arntzen to the nearest rest area so that he could conduct a DUI investigation in a safe location. According to the officer, Arntzen failed to keep his balance and performed poorly on the field sobriety exercises.
Arntzen was placed under arrest for DUI at approximately 3:50 a.m. Arntzen was transported to the Pinellas County detention center at around 5:16 a.m. where he provided a breath sample of 0.136g.
Arntzen was then transported to the Hillsborough County detention center where he was booked in without incident.