CARIBOU, Maine — As of Oct. 4, Caribou police have charged 30 people with operating under the influence this year, with the three most recent incidents occurring on Monday, Oct. 2.
The latest incidents began at about 11 a.m. Monday when Joshua Turner, 31, of Fort Fairfield allegedly rolled his 2002 Chevy Tracker “multiple times.” The vehicle eventually came to a stop, upside down in the driveway of a residence on the west Presque Isle Road, according to a press release issued Wednesday by the Caribou Police Department
Officer Chad Cochran performed a drug evaluation and subsequently charged Turner, who was uninjured, with operating under the influence of drugs and failure to produce evidence of insurance.
The next incident occurred less than four hours later when police received a report of a “vehicle operating all over the road before pulling into the police station parking lot.”
Cochran did not have to travel far and, according to the release, “went out and arrested” the driver, Adam Worsley, 32, of Perham. Worsley was charged with operating under the influence of drugs and operating after suspension.
The final drug-related incident occurred at 6:40 p.m., when Caribou dispatch “received a complaint of a driver operating at extremely low speeds on Route 89 and then on Route 1,” according to the release.
Police reported that Officer Kegan McPherson located the driver, Richard Bilodeau, 61 of Limestone, and arrested him on charges of operating under the influence of drugs and violation of conditional release.
Bilodeau is set to appear in court on his charges on Nov. 3, while Turner and Worsley are both scheduled to appear on Dec. 7.
Out of the 30 OUI charges filed so far this year, nine were drug-related, with Monday’s arrests attributing to three of the nine, Police Chief Michael Gahagan said in the release. During the same time frame last year the department had recorded a total of 27 OUI charges, with six being drug related.
“This number is too high,” Gahagan wrote in the release. “If you suspect someone is operating a motor vehicle under the influence, call us at 493-3301.”
