WESTFIELD – A man who crashed his car into a convenience store reportedly didn’t let the collision distract him from his purpose and went into the store to buy a pack of cigarettes before getting back in his car and driving away.
Police report that a 10:26 a.m. caller on Saturday reported that a car had jumped the curb and driven into the Cumberland Farms building on Main Street and when Officer Jeffrey Vigneault arrived he found that the door of the store and adjacent brickwork had been damaged but the offending vehicle had left.
Vigneault reviewed the store’s security video and reports that the operator was seen when he exited the car to buy his cigarettes and the vehicle was identified.
Vigneault went to the owner’s registered address on McKinley Terrace and found the damaged vehicle parked behind the residence.
He spoke with the owner, Charles A. Travers, 58, of 18 McKinley Terrace, who invited him into his apartment.
Vigneault reports that Travers appeared to be intoxicated and the man told the officer that he had consumed about a quart of vodka before he went to the store for cigarettes.
He attempted a series of field sobriety tests which he did not pass.
While in the man’s home, Vigneault observed a .22 caliber rifle in plain view and reports that Travers said that his FID card had expired some time ago. The gun was seized.
Travers was transported to the station and arrested for operating under the influence of liquor and leaving the scene of a property damage accident.
In addition, he will be summoned to court to answer a charge of possession of a firearm without a firearms identification card.
Travers was arraigned on Monday before Judge Philip A. Contant in Westfield District Court and was released on his personal recognizance pending a Sept. 23 hearing.
