A man suspected of driving under the influence was arrested with an AR-style rifle with 12 loaded magazines.
Lake County sheriff’s deputies were dispatched early Monday morning to the Kangaroo gas station on State Road 44 in Eustis when a call was received regarding a possibly intoxicated man.
When deputies arrived at the store, they made contact with 41-year-old Austin G. Teeter. Teeter appeared to be under the influence of prescription drugs which had been prescribed to him as a result of neck surgery he had undergone earlier this year.
Teeter told deputies that a friend had driven Teeter’s car to the station and left him there as Teeter’s driver’s license had been suspended for refusing to provide a breath sample. When he called the friend to come back to the gas station and pick him up, the deputies noted in their report that they heard him give directions to the gas station to the friend who had supposedly driven him to the location.
The deputies left the station, but moved to an area where they could observe the Kangaroo parking lot. Fourteen minutes later they saw Teeter get into his 2018 Jeep and drive from the gas pumps to the east side of the station. The deputies confronted Teeter and requested he perform standardized field sobriety tests. He performed poorly on the exercises and was placed under arrest for driving while license suspended and DUI. When the deputies searched his car they found bags containing more than 657 grams of marijuana, a vial containing mushrooms, a bolt-action rifle, the AR style rifle, 12 magazines loaded with .556 rounds, boxes of ammunition and two loaded .22 caliber pistols in a case.
He was transported to the Lake County Jail where he refused to provide a urine sample.
He was charged with driving with license suspended, DUI, refusal to provide a urine sample after providing breath samples, possession of more than 20 grams of marijuanas and possession of drug paraphernalia . Bond was set at $15,000 which Teeter posted.
