Stony Brook student Christopher Pimentel was arrested early Friday morning for driving while intoxicated after police found his car in a bush in the H Quad parking lot, according to University Chief of Police Robert Lenahan.
Lenahan said university police responded to a phone call about a car driving down the wrong side of the road without any lights near the athletic fields at approximately 12:10 a.m. The officers found Pimental trying to get his car out of the bushes and asked him to roll down his window.
Based on the initial conversation Pimentel had with the officers, they asked him to step out of his vehicle and the officers came to the conclusion that he was under the influence of alcohol. Pimentel was arrested but did not take a breathalyzer test at the scene of the accident.
The Stony Brook Volunteer Ambulance Corps. transported Pimentel to Stony Brook University Hospital to be treated for intoxication. He was released back into university police custody sometime today and was later transferred to the Suffolk County criminal courts.
SBVAC Vice President Max McDonnell said the organization is not able to make a comment on the accident at this time.
Pimentel is also a staff photographer for The Statesman.
5:58 p.m., Oct. 25: University Chief of Police Robert J. Lenahan told The Statesman that the University Police received a complaint about a male student driving down the wrong side of the road near the athletic fields.
The responding officers found the student trying to get his car out of the bushes into which he crashed. The student appeared to be under the influence of alcohol and was arrested at the scene of the incident. SBVAC arrived at the scene and took him to Stony Brook University Hospital.
12:39 a.m., Oct. 25: After midnight on Friday, Oct. 25, a white car drove into the bushes behind Benedict College in H Quad.
Four police cars and an ambulance were at the scene.
A student who identified herself to the reporter as Shirley said she saw a male on the bed in the back of the ambulance as it drove away.
It is unclear whether or not the driver was a student and if he or she sustained any injuries.
Elite Towing and Transport Inc. arrived at the scene to move the car, according to an Elite Towing employee who identified himself as Herman, but declined to provide his last name to the reporter over the phone.
The University Police could not be reached for comment.
Correction: October 29, 2013 An earlier version of this article misspelled the driver’s name. The correct spelling is Christopher Pimentel, as the article now reflects.
Hanaa’ Tameez
Hanaa’ is a senior journalism and Spanish Language and Literature major. After coming to Stony Brook, Hanaa’ decided she wanted to explore print and online media after previously working in radio. She joined The Statesman in the fall of her freshman year and became an assistant editor that spring. She hopes to use her language and multimedia skills to travel and someday work for a Spanish-language publication in either Spain or South America. Contact Hanaa' at: [email protected].
