Man violating probation makes drunken call to cops for ride home, Florida sheriff says

A man ordered to avoid booze as part of his felony probation agreement made the odd decision to call 911 when he was drunk and needed a ride at 1 a.m., according to investigators in Florida.

Deputies accommodated him, but the ride was to jail rather than his house in Winter Haven, the Polk County Sheriff’s Office said in a Sunday, July 21, Facebook post. It happened July 12 in Lake Wales, about a 60-mile drive east from Tampa..

“The caller ... reported that his (wife) dropped him off in the middle of nowhere, he was drunk, had nowhere to go, and asked if a deputy could pick him up,” the sheriff’s office said.

“When asked where he was, it sounded like he said Altamonte Road. But there is no Altamonte Road in Polk County. Regardless, dispatchers were able to pinpoint the man’s location at the intersection of Alturas Babson Park Cutoff Road and Crews Road near Lake Wales.”

That is about a 15-mile drive southeast from the man’s home in Winter Haven, and maps show it is sparsely populated ranch territory.

“Deputies responded to the area to help the man and quickly located him,” officials said.

“It wasn’t too difficult — he said he wasn’t wearing a shirt, and he was the only shirtless man out there at 1 o’clock in the morning.”

The 39-year-old told deputies he was stranded after drinking a few beers and getting into an argument with his wife.”

It was during a routine background search that deputies discovered “an issue” with his story.

“The man is on felony probation for DUI resulting in serious bodily injury, and one of the stipulations of his probation is that he is not to drink any alcohol,” the sheriff’s office said.

An affidavit reports the suspect was put on five-years probation in 2021 and among the special conditions are restrictions against driving and visiting any bars.

This story was originally published July 22, 2024 at 11:17 AM.