NACOGDOCHES, Texas — A Nacogdoches police officer has been suspended following an arrest for driving while intoxicated (DWI).
According to the Nacogdoches Police Department, around 7:45 a.m. in Sunday, the Nacogdoches Combined Communications Center received a call regarding a welfare check on a person asleep behind the wheel of a running in pickup blocking the intersection of County Road 780 and State Highway 21 in Douglass.
The arrest affidavit states when the a trooper with the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) arrived on scene, he found a black pickup in a dirt lot near the intersection. The vehicle had been moved there by a deputy who had previously arrived on scene, the affidavit states. The deputy also pointed out an open beer can near the vehicle that is believed to have come from the pickup.
Officials detained the driver, identified as Daniel Aburto, 30, an off-duty Nacogdcoches Police Department officer.
The arrest affidavit states Aburto admitted to drinking alcoholic beverages the night before and had just dropped off a friend. Aburto said he was then traveling back to his residence.
"Aburto had glassy bloodshot eyes and the odor of an alcoholic beverage emitting from his person," the affidavit states.
The DPS trooper says he conducted field sobriety test and saw Aburto sway during the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) portion of the test.
The affidavit states Aburto was given breathalyzer tests returned a Blood Alcohol Contents (BACs) of .138 and .144 -- nearly double the legal limit.
"A search of [the vehicle] revealed there to be a cold, open, Michelob Ultra beer that was still mostly full in a hard koozie that was in the front center console cup holder," the affidavit states.
Aburto was then taken into custody for DWI. He was booked into the Nacogdoches County Law Enforcement Center and has been placed on suspension until the completion of an internal investigation.
