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Kelowna  

Sleeping driver arrested

Police are thanking a Kelowna resident whose quick thinking might have stopped an impaired man from driving his vehicle.

The resident pulled into the parking lot of a local convenience store on Richter Street Thursday and noticed a man slumped over the wheel of a vehicle.

RCMP Cpl. Tania Carroll said the resident called police just after 4 p.m. to notify them of the driver.

“When officers arrived the driver was still occupying the driver’s seat and appeared to be asleep. Despite the efforts made by police the driver could not be woken easily and appeared to be under the influence of an intoxicating substance,” she stated in a release.

Officers noticed what appeared to be some illegal drugs in plain sight inside the vehicle.

The driver was taken to the RCMP Detachment for a drug influence evaluation.

Now the 36-year-old Kelowna man faces potential charges of impaired care and control of a vehicle and possession of a controlled substance. The man was released from custody pending a later court date.

“We want to thank the caller who notified the police and stayed on scene until the member arrived,” said Carroll. “Had the caller not stayed, the driver could have woken up and began driving again, putting the public and himself at greater risk.”



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