Clearwater Man Arrested For Fleeing Police While Drunk
ST. CLOUD -- A Clearwater man faces criminal charges after allegedly leading a Stearns County Sheriff's deputy on a chase Wednesday just after 3:30 p.m.
According to the complaint, a caller reported seeing a pickup driving erratically and had run a red light at County Road 75 and 43rd Street South in St. Cloud and heading toward St. Augusta.
A sheriff's deputy responded to the area and saw the pickup driven by 58-year-old Ronald Koopmeiners. The deputy activated his lights and siren and said Koopmeiners failed to stop and continued on County Road 75 toward Clearwater, at times reaching 85-miles-per-hour and crossing the center line. Koopmeiners ultimately pulled into his garage in the 500 block of Bluff Street in Clearwater.
Court records show Koopmeiners told the deputy he saw him as he crossed over the bridge into Wright County but wanted to pull into his garage so his truck wouldn't be towed. Koopmeiners allegedly said he didn't stop because he had a few drinks and believed he was drunk.
A breathalyzer showed a preliminary blood-alcohol level of 0.24.
Koopmeiners is charged with felony fleeing police, two counts of DWI, and driving after cancellation - danger to public safety.
Koopmeiners has a previous DWI conviction from 2012.