On May 14th at around 12:35 a.m., police stopped a passenger vehicle in the area of West St. and Kansas City St. after observing it make a turning violation. Police made contact with the driver, identified as 21-year-old Zachary Vermeulen of Rapid City. Police noted that Zachary was not wearing a seatbelt, exhibited slurred speech, and had the smell of an alcoholic beverage coming from his person. Zachary was placed under arrest for DUI. In the meantime, police worked to identify the passengers in the vehicle. After originally giving police a false name, the front seat passenger exited the vehicle and attempted to run from the scene. Following a short foot pursuit, the passenger (later identified as 19-year-old Cody Bechtel of Rapid City) was taken into custody. A search of Cody’s person turned up marijuana. It was determined that Cody had a warrant, so he was arrested for Obstruction, Impersonation to Deceive Law Enforcement, Possession of Marijuana, and the Warrant. A search of the vehicle turned up a bag containing marijuana, and Zachary was arrested for the offences of DUI (4th), Possession of Marijuana, Driving Under Revocation, No Proof of Insurance, and a Seatbelt Violation.
