A 40-year-old St. Louis man was arrested in Eureka for suspicion of driving while intoxicated after he reportedly drove a van off Hwy. 109. The driver was walking around the van and talking on a cell phone when an officer arrived at the scene, Eureka Police reported.
At about 3:25 a.m. April 9, an officer spotted the 2002 GMC Safari in a grassy area off the highway near Fourth Street. The officer also observed tire tracks that led from the road to the van, the report said.
The driver told the officer he was headed south on the highway when another car ran him off the road, but he couldn’t provide a description of the car. The officer said he had had not seen another vehicle traveling on the highway, according to the report.
The man said the other car must have turned around, but the officer pointed out there is a concrete wall in the median, making it impossible for a car to turn around there, the report said.
The officer also allegedly smelled alcohol on the man’s breath, and he told the officer he had a few drinks at about 10 p.m. The officer also allegedly saw two cups that had contained margaritas in the van’s cupholders, according to the report.
The man allegedly failed field sobriety tests, and he was arrested and taken to the Police Station. At the station, the man allegedly registered a .222 percent blood-alcohol content, nearly three times the legal limit in Missouri, which is .08 percent, the report said.
He was booked and released with a summons to appear in Eureka Municipal Court for suspicion of DWI, Lt. Michael Werges said.