Bradenton man arrested in connection to fatal Sarasota crash
A 30-year-old Bradenton man has been arrested in Manatee County in connection to a fatal June crash in Sarasota while high on nitrous oxide.
At about 5:30 p.m. on June 12, a Toyota Corolla and a Suzuki motorcycle collided in the southbound lanes of the 1200 block North Beneva Road. The accident resulted in the fatality of the 60-year-old motorcyclist.
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Witnesses told Sarasota Police officers that the motorcyclist was driving southbound while Jordan Schopfer, 30, was driving northbound in the outside lane of North Beneva Road. They said Schopfer then moved from the outside lane to the inside lane but did not attempt to correct the vehicle. Schopfer continued driving at an angle over the raised concrete median and into the southbound lanes, hitting the motorcyclist, according to witnesses.
Officers investigating the incident found a can of compressed air and a receipt with a purchase time 12 minutes before the crash. They also found a bag that had a restaurant-style whipping container inside.
Officers obtained surveillance footage from a store where Schopfer was seen purchasing a can of compressed air wearing the same clothes he was wearing at the time of the crash. Video footage from outside the store shows Schopfer getting into the same vehicle involved in the crash, police say. The car was seen on camera nearly hitting a pedestrian in the parking lot as well as rear-ending a parked car, according to police.
On June 26, 2021, Sarasota police developed probable cause that Schopfer “huffed or snorted” nitrous oxide to “get high.”
“Initial effects of inhalant abuse are similar to those of anesthetics: simulations, disinhibition, and euphoria,” the Sarasota Police Department said in a statement. “These sensations may be followed by hallucinations and general depression including slurred speech and drowsiness or sleep within seconds to minutes.”
At the time of the incident, Schopfer's license was suspended/revoked for DUI with personal injury, with previous suspensions for DUI and failing to pay a traffic fine from 2020.
Schopfer is currently being held at the Manatee County Jail with no bond on charges of vehicular homicide, manslaughter, and driving with a suspended license with knowledge.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Bradenton man Jordan Schopfer arrested in connection to fatal crash
