A 63-year-old Florida man who stopped a sheriff’s deputy to ask how to get to an auto parts store on Saturday night instead got directions to jail when the deputy arrested him on DUI and cocaine possession charges.
Juan Zamora was driving near Ocala when he flashed his headlights at a Marion County Sheriff’s deputy’s squad car, an arrest report said. Deputy Calvan Batts pulled over and Zamora asked him for directions to the auto parts store.
Batts wrote in the report that he could smell alcohol and observed Zamora’s bloodshot and watery eyes. The deputy also noted that Zamora was “unsteady on his feet.”
Zamora told the deputy he had two shots of bourbon hours earlier. He also said he was “legally disabled” but agreed to take a sobriety test, the Ocala Star-Banner reported.
The deputy wrote that Zamora had difficulty with the sobriety tests, which he blamed on his disability.
Batts wrote that he found a small bag with a powdery substance in Zamora’s shirt pocket that field-tested for cocaine.
Zamora initially declined a breath test, telling the deputy, “You didn’t pull me over. I pulled you over.” He later took the test, which registered blood alcohol levels of 0.137 and 0.136, which are higher than the 0.8 which is considered legally impaired in Florida.
The arrest report said Batts also found a bottle of whiskey in the car. Zamora was traveling with a 15-year-old passenger.
Zamora remained in jail on Wednesday. His next court appearance is scheduled for March 10. A lawyer for Zamora wasn’t listed on jail records.
The Associated Press contributed to this article