WOONSOCKET – A North Smithfield man was drunk when he caused a five-car chain-reaction crash, fled the scene on foot and then lied about his role in the incident, police say.
Dylan T. McGarrigle, 22, of 76 Mendon Road, is facing a half-dozen criminal and motor vehicle offenses in all, including driving under the influence; duty on collision with an unattended vehicle; driving with an open container of alcohol; leaving a lane of travel; driving with a suspended registration; and possession of an unlawful knife.
“It’s Cinco de Mayo and I’ve been drinking,” were the first words McGarrigle allegedly uttered when Sgt. Patrick McGourty caught up with him as he was walking on Fairmount Street, about a half-mile from the multi-vehicle crash on Center Street.
Police reports say McGarrigle and two passengers were riding in his silver Jeep Cherokee shortly before 2 a.m. on Monday, May 6 when he veered out of his travel lane and slammed into a line of parked vehicles. Four other vehicles – a Buick, a Nissan, a Toyota and a Kia – all sustained damage that ranged from heavy to minor. The damage to McGarrigle’s crumpled Jeep disabled the vehicle, according to police reports.
There were two partially consumed containers of hard seltzer in the vehicle when police found it, including one positioned above the steering wheel, police reports say.
All of the parked vehicles were apparently unoccupied at the time of the crash, and there were no injuries.
In speech police described as, “slurred,” and, “incoherent,” McGarrigle insisted he had no idea why officers were looking for him when they located him on Fairmount Street. He denied driving the vehicle and claimed he was on his way home after repeatedly advising police he’d been celebrating Cinco de Mayo.
But McGarrigle’s version was sunk by an eyewitness who made a positive identification of McGarrigle as the driver who was seen fleeing the Jeep with two females, police say.
McGarrigle was arrested after performing a field sobriety test and consenting to a PBT, or preliminary breath test, on which he registered a blood alcohol concentration of .169, which is more than twice the legal limit for driving. He later refused to a submit to a full breath alcohol test, according to police reports.
During a routine frisk of McGarrigle prior to transporting him to headquarters, police said they found a folding knife with a blade about four inches long in his possession, which is over the legal limit.
Follow Russ Olivo on Twitter @russolivo
