Justin Timberlake’s drinking buddy was reportedly allowed by police to drive the singer’s car home after he was arrested on charges of driving while under the influence.
Justin Timberlake’s drinking buddy was reportedly allowed by police to drive the singer’s car home after he was arrested on charges of driving while under the influence
The 43-year-old ‘SexyBack’ performer’s friends are said to have intervened after he was pulled over on 18 June for running a stop sign and swerving into the wrong lane following a night out at the American Hotel in Sag Harbor, New York.
TMZ is reporting that, according to sources: “After (Justin) was stopped, cops say he failed multiple sobriety field tests and also smelled of alcohol. He refused to blow into a breathalyser, and claimed he only drank one martini.”
The outlet added: “Sources with direct knowledge say the car Justin was following came back to where the singer was pulled over.
“There was a woman and her husband in that car, and the woman got out and went up to one of the cops and began questioning him, asking, Are you going to arrest Justin Timberlake?’
“She then offered to drive Justin to their house, where he was going to spend the night… in other words, just let him go and she and her husband would get him home safely. That strategy did not work, and Justin was arrested.
“Now here’s the twist. Our sources say the woman asked cops if she could take Justin’s rental car to her house, given that Justin was going to jail. The cops obliged, she got in Justin’s car and left.”
We’re told the woman had arrived at The American Hotel two hours before Justin and was drinking … and it was apparent she had been drinking. Yet the two cops who were on the scene let her take the wheel and drive away.
TMZ also said Justin’s lawyer Edward Burke, Jr – who is trying to get the case dismissed – will “argue the two young cops were so off in their judgment they let a person who had clearly been drinking drive away, right in front of their eyes”.
It added the attorney is set to ask: “If they were unable to properly evaluate her, how could they properly evaluate him?”
Justin has been charged with one count of driving while intoxicated and cited for two traffic violations after drinking at the American Hotel, where he allegedly was seen downing another patron’s cocktail.
His wife, Jessica Biel, 42, was not with him at the time, as she was filming an upcoming Prime Video series in New York City.
Justin’s lawyer said during a hearing last week Justin was “not intoxicated” at the time of his arrest and stated the cops in the case “made a number of very significant errors”.
He added he is “confident that (this DWI) charge will be dismissed”.
Justin is due in court for his arraignment on 2 August but is expected to attend the hearing virtually.
