Thursday, January 23, 2014

Bieber held for 'drunk road racing'

Justin Bieber arrested in Miami Beach for 'drunk road racing'

Police mugshot of Justin Bieber. 23 Jan 2014 Miami Beach Police tweeted this mugshot of Justin Bieber after his arrest

Justin Bieber has been arrested in Miami and accused of road racing and driving under the influence of alcohol, marijuana and prescription drugs.

Miami Beach Police said the Canadian pop star was detained after racing on a street early on Thursday.

Police said he initially did not co-operate when pulled over and was charged with resisting arrest without violence.

The 19-year-old has had several run-ins with police in recent years.

The arrest comes a week after his home in Los Angeles was searched by police following allegations he had thrown eggs at his neighbour's house.

He was accused of causing significant damage to the property. One member of his entourage was arrested for alleged drug possession following the search.

In the latest incident, police said the singer had been driving a yellow Lamborghini when he was arrested in the early hours of Thursday.

The Miami Herald reported that members of the musician's entourage had apparently used their cars to block traffic on Pine Tree Drive at 26th Street, effectively creating a drag strip.

Police say the star didn't co-operate at first, questioning why he had been stopped. He also had an invalid Georgia driver's licence, officers said.

Chief Ray Martinez: "Mr Bieber smelled strongly of alcohol"

The driver of a second car, a red Ferrari, was also arrested and both cars impounded, said Miami Dade-Police spokesman Sgt Bobby Hernandez.

Police later named the other driver as an R&B singer known as Khalil.

"During the investigation Mr Bieber made statements that he had consumed some alcohol, that he had been smoking marijuana and consumed some prescription medication," said Miami Beach police chief Raymond Martinez.

"They were starting from a stop position and they were accelerating to a high rate of speed, going almost double the speed limit... in that area."

The street where police say the singer was racing is a residential area in mid-Miami Beach.

Impounded cars in Miami. 23 Jan 2014 A Lamborghini, right, and a Ferrari were both impounded by Miami police

Small apartment buildings are along one side of the street and on the other side are a high school, a youth centre, a golf course and a fire station.

In 2013, the singer was asked to remove graffiti he had left on the wall of a hotel in Australia. That came a month after he was charged in Brazil over a similar offence.

In 2012 he faced accusations of reckless driving, although prosecutors declined to press charges.

Justin Bieber lives in a gated community in Calabasas, about 30 miles north-west of central Los Angeles.

Prisoner van with Justin Bieber drives through Miami. 23 Jan 2014 TV cameras followed a police van believed to contain the star

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