Hartford police: Drunken driver in stolen car drives up to DUI checkpoint
A Vernon man drove up to officers at a sobriety checkpoint in a stolen car while drunk Thursday, Hartford police said.
Christopher Romeo also didn’t have his seat belt on, they said.
Romeo, 42, of Union Street was stopped and charged with operating while under the influence, third-degree larceny and failure to wear a seat belt, police said.
He was one of the first drivers to approach the checkpoint, which was set up at 212 Capen St. from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. He drove up to officers at 5:05 p.m., sans seat belt, in a 2014 Chevrolet Cruze, showing signs of intoxication, Lt. Aaron Boisvert said.
Police did a field sobriety test, and determined he was drunk, Boisvert said.
When they checked the car’s license plate number, they learned the Chevy had been stolen, he said.
Christine Dempsey can be reached at cdempsey@courant.com.
