Law enforcement made several arrests this past weekend during the Leesburg Bikefest event. Most involved motorcyclists who were taken into custody and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
The arrests included:
Man arrested after fleeing from Shamrock Lounge
Kevin C. Kearney, 64, was arrested after fleeing from a deputy who was assigned to a task force to provide law enforcement during Bikefest.
According to a police report, Kearney, of Leesburg, was traveling southbound in the northbound lanes of Highway 441 just after midnight Sunday morning when he pulled into the drive-through at the Shamrock Lounge. Kearney told the deputy he was returning to the bar to recover a credit card he had left there earlier, the report says.
When ordered to pull his motorcycle into a side parking lot, Kearney sped away and headed north on Highway 27/441, the report says. After briefly losing control of his motorcycle while turning onto Griffin Road, Kearney stopped, put his hands on his head and started yelling apologies for fleeing, the report says.
Kearney gave the deputy a Florida identification card and told the deputy he ran from him because he didn’t have a valid Florida driver’s license. A check revealed that his license was suspended in 2007 for DUI.
Kearney, who is a New Jersey native, had bloodshot eyes and slurred speech, the report says, adding that he told the deputy he had two beers earlier.
After Kearney failed field sobriety tests, he was arrested for driving under the influence, driving while his license was suspended (third offense) and resisting arrest. He was taken to the Lake County Jail and held on a $15,750 bond.
Wrong-way motorcyclist arrested
A New York native was arrested early Saturday morning after a trooper smelled alcohol on his breath, a Florida Highway Patrol report states.
Motorcyclists James Allen Serrago, 53, of Cape Coral, was pulled over at about 1:15 a.m. after a trooper saw him drive the wrong way in a left-turn lane on Highway 441 near College Drive.
According to the report, the trooper administered several field sobriety tests after smelling alcohol while speaking with Serrago. The motorcyclist, who said he was in the area for Leesburg Bikefest and had just dropped off a friend off at the Microtel Inn & Suites on Highway 441, failed all four tests and was taken into custody, the report states.
An inspection of Serrago’s motorcycle saddlebags revealed several open and closed containers of alcohol, including a flask that contained a liquid that smelled like wine, an open bottle of Captain Morgan and five cans of Michelob Ultra beer. Earlier, Serrago told the trooper he had had two beers around 11 p.m. at a local bar, the report says.
Serrago refused to take a breath test, marking the second time he had refused such a test of his breath, blood or urine. The trooper told Serrago that a second refusal would result in a misdemeanor charge, but he still refused to take the test.
Serrago was taken to the Lake County Jail and held on a $600 bond. His motorcycle was towed from the scene and impounded.
Motorcyclist charged with DUI
Michael A. Roberts, 68, of North Palm Beach was arrested Saturday night after a Volusia County deputy working the Bikefest event noticed that he was not properly wearing eye protection.
After stopping Roberts, the deputy smelled alcohol on his breath. Roberts told the deputy he had two drinks earlier at dinner.
A short time later, Roberts was taken into custody for DUI and transported to the Lake County Jail, where he was held on a $1,000 bond. His 2009 Harley-Davidson was turned over to a friend at Roberts’ request.
Man cusses at trooper after arrest
Motorcyclists Steven Keith Calim, 55, of West Palm Beach was arrested and charged with DUI after he was stopped on Highway 441 north of 7th Street on Saturday night. He provided a Lake County deputy with a driver’s license but couldn’t provide a valid registration or proof of insurance.
After Calim, originally of San Diego, was arrested by a Florida Highway Patrol trooper, he became angry and “started banging around and used foul language” toward the trooper while handcuffed in the back of the patrol car.
Calim, who said he had not being drinking, refused to take a breath test and was taken to the Lake County Jail, where he was held on a $1,000 bond.
Man arrested, refuses breath test
Robert Lee Wakefield, 53, of Fruitland Park was arrested early Sunday morning and charged with DUI after his motorcycle swerved into the lane of an oncoming Florida Highway Patrol trooper on Highway 441 near 7th Street.
Wakefield, who said he had one beer, failed field sobriety tests and refused to take a breath test. The reports states that he also had refused to take a breath test and/or provide a urine sample in the past.
Wakefield was booked into the Lake County Jail and held on a $1,000 bond.
Woman charged with marijuana possession
Anne Marie Geraldo, 30, of Summerfield was arrested Saturday night and charged with possession of marijuana after being stopped at the intersection of Main Street and College Road.
Geraldo, originally of New Jersey, also was charged with possession of marijuana concentrate and drug paraphernalia. She was transported to the Lake County Jail and held on an $8,000 bond.
