Man Arrested For Oui After Crashing Into Scaffolding On Grove Street

Friday, November 09, 2018

GoLocalWorcester News Team

A man was arrested for operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol after crashing into scaffolding in front of the Northworks building on Grove Street.

Jose Velez, 23, was charged with failure to stay within marked lanes and operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol.

The Incident

On November 8, 2018, at approximately 12:16 a.m., Worcester Police responded to a single car crash located at 102 Grove Street. Upon the officers arrival they saw a 2003 Nissan Xterra under a tangled pile of scaffolding. The scaffolding was positioned in front of the old Northworks building. The building is currently undergoing extensive renovations.

In addition, the officers saw a utility light pole that was knocked down and a parking meter that was bent. The officer also noticed that a large piece of equipment, a JLG hydraulic lift, received extensive damage to the control panel, mechanical components and to a tire that was ripped off as a result of the impact.

The officer saw that the driver was out of his car and sitting on the ground talking to members of the Worcester Fire Department. The driver was identified as Jose Velez, 23, of 45 Mohave Road.

The officer spoke with two witnesses that had just exited The Fix Restaurant. The officer was told that as they were walking under the scaffolding the two noticed the Nissan drive through construction cones that had been set up throughout the construction site and around the JLG lift. The two had to jump out of the way for fear that they’d be hit by the oncoming car. Once the car came to a stop the two witnesses ran towards the Nissan and helped the driver out of the car.

While speaking to Velez, the officer observed a strong odor of alcohol emitting from his breath. Based on the physical evidence, the presence of the odor of alcohol and the results of some field tests, Velez was placed under arrest for Failure to Stay within Marked Lanes and Operating a MV Under the Influence of Alcohol.

Velez was transported to a local hospital for treatment and then released back to police custody.

The building was not struck in this incident and therefore deemed safe to enter.