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A Buffalo man who was the subject of a 2015 viral video that captured him causing an accident after driving drunk on the New York State Thruway is again in trouble with the law.
Kiran Thapa, 36, was arrested for felony aggravated driving while intoxicated and several other charges Sunday evening, according to the Orchard Park Police.
Orchard Park Police Lieutenant Greg Sheppard, after seeing Thapa’s 2015 mug shot, said that Thapa was the same man from the 2015 incident.
On April 21, 2015, Thapa, then 32 years old and identified as being from Columbus, Ohio, was arrested by state troopers on the New York State Thruway in Batavia for multiple traffic infractions and charged with aggravated DWI and first-degree aggravated unlicensed operation.
That Thruway incident was captured on video by another motorist. The YouTube video of the event has more than 7.8 million views and has been commented on more than 19,000 times.
Thapa is seen driving aggressively in a Chevrolet Camaro behind a pick-up truck before attempting an off-road pass of the pick-up on the left, causing an accident that ran both vehicles as well as a tractor-trailer off the road.
SHARE
TWEET
A Buffalo man who was the subject of a 2015 viral video that captured him causing an accident after driving drunk on the New York State Thruway is again in trouble with the law.
Kiran Thapa, 36, was arrested for felony aggravated driving while intoxicated and several other charges Sunday evening, according to the Orchard Park Police.
Orchard Park Police Lieutenant Greg Sheppard, after seeing Thapa’s 2015 mug shot, said that Thapa was the same man from the 2015 incident.
On April 21, 2015, Thapa, then 32 years old and identified as being from Columbus, Ohio, was arrested by state troopers on the New York State Thruway in Batavia for multiple traffic infractions and charged with aggravated DWI and first-degree aggravated unlicensed operation.
That Thruway incident was captured on video by another motorist. The YouTube video of the event has more than 7.8 million views and has been commented on more than 19,000 times.
Thapa is seen driving aggressively in a Chevrolet Camaro behind a pick-up truck before attempting an off-road pass of the pick-up on the left, causing an accident that ran both vehicles as well as a tractor-trailer off the road.
On Sunday night, Orchard Park Police said that Thapa’s alleged erratic driving – including a sudden U-turn on Southwestern Boulevard – led to his arrest on multiple charges.
Thapa was charged with felony aggravated DWI after police said a breath test yielded a 0.26 per cent blood alcohol content, which is more than three times the legal limit (0.08). Police said Thapa was driving despite his license being revoked in 2016 due to DWI.
At approximately 9:30 p.m. Sunday, an Orchard Park Police patrol observed a 2017 Toyota Corolla travelling very slowly on Southwestern near Transit Road, “obstructing traffic behind it and angering other motorists to the point of honking their horns,” officials said in a release.
Police said the vehicle then completed “a sudden, unsafe U-turn, nearly causing a crash, and patrol attempted to stop the vehicle.” The driver kept driving for approximately a quarter mile before pulling over, police said.
Thapa exhibited signs of intoxication and failed numerous field sobriety tests, police said, and was arrested for DWI. Police said Thapa was returned to the Orchard Park police station where he consented to the breath test.
Thapa was also charged with first-degree aggravated unlicensed operation, unlicensed operation, felony DWI, operating without an interlock device, driving too slow, impeding traffic and unsafe turn.
Thapa was arraigned by Judge Edward Pace and was released after posting $1,000 bail. He will appear in Town Court at a later date.
