A 33-year-old Benton County deputy received a DWI citation last week after police reportedly saw him driving a sheriff's office vehicle into oncoming lanes in Northwest Arkansas, authorities said.
Officer Stephen Grizzle was on patrol at about 7 p.m. in Decatur when a dispatcher advised him about a vehicle driving into oncoming traffic and “all over the road,” according to the officer’s report about the stop.
Police pulled over the SUV after it hit the centerline in front of a truck stop and, while going around a curve and the crest of a hill, drove into oncoming lanes, the report states. Authorities said the driver, Tou Meng Xiong, told Grizzle he was with the Benton County sheriff’s office.
Decatur Police Chief Joe Savage confirmed Xiong was driving a sheriff's office vehicle when he was stopped.
Authorities said Xiong took a field sobriety test and was taken to the Centerton Police Department to conduct a breath test.
The breath test registered Xiong as having a blood alcohol level of .10%, which is over the legal limit of .08, authorities said.
Xiong, who was from Centerton, was cited for driving left of center and for a DWI first offense and was released. According to the report, he is scheduled to appear in Benton County District Court on Jan. 8 at 9 a.m.
Benton County sheriff's office spokeswoman Sgt. Shannon Jenkins confirmed in an email that Xiong, who was hired by the sheriff's office in January 2012, submitted a resignation letter Tuesday.