A 62-year-old man from Noelville has been charged with impaired driving even though he was a passenger in another vehicle when he was caught by police.
The Ontario Provincial Police responded to a call on June 28 at 1:30 a.m. on Prévost Road in French River.
A witness said a van had crashed into a ditch and was being pulled out by a pickup truck being driven by the suspect’s friend.
While responding to the scene, officers were told both vehicles were now heading toward Highway 535.
Officers found the truck and pulled over the driver. They found the suspect was now a passenger in the pickup truck, and that he was drunk. He was arrested and charged with impaired and failing to remain at the scene of a collision.
He was released and is scheduled to appear at the Ontario Court of Justice on July 22 in Sudbury.
The van was later found in a field, not far from the collision scene and was impounded for seven days. The man was issued a 90-day suspension.
There have now been 33 drivers charged under Criminal Impaired Driving Laws in the Nipissing West Detachment area in 2020.
