Crime & Safety

Amherst Man Among Five Bagged for DWI at Route 101 Checkpoint

Police also catch a 22-year-old Goffstown resident attempting to avert the screening area.

Among 257 vehicles and operators screened at a Bedford sobriety checkpoint in Bedford Friday night into Saturday morning, five arrests were made with charges ranging from driving under the influence of drugs to underage DUI.

The Bedford Police Department joined forces with New Hampshire State Police from Troop B to conduct the checkpoint on Route 101 between 9 p.m. Friday and 3 a.m. Saturday morning.

The joint effort, which was authorized by an order of the Hillsborough Superior Court and conducted under guidelines promulgated by the New Hampshire Attorney General's Office, produced the following arrests:

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  • Jeffrey Nowell, 22, of Goffstown, was charged with driving while intoxicated after police observed him driving his vehicle through the divided highway median in an attempt to avoid the checkpoint. He was pursued by troopers, found to be intoxicated and arrested.
  • David Schwankert, 41, of Mont Vernon, was charged with driving under the influence of drugs.
  • Taylor Foster, 19, of Goffstown, was charged with underage driving under the influence and transportation of alcohol by a minor.
  • Donald Fleurent, 49, of Wilton, was charged with driving while intoxicated.
  • Christopher Gagnon, 41, of Amherst, was charged with driving while intoxicated.

Each of the five people who were arrested were later released on bail. They face arraignment at a later date in the 9th Circuit Court District Division in Merrimack.

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In addition to the five arrests and numerous warnings, one  person was summonsed for operating without a valid License and another for driving after suspension.

New Hampshire State Police Colonel Robert Quinn and Bedford Police Chief John Bryfonski issued a joint press release stating that they consider the detection and apprehension of impaired drivers to be a top priority. They also said they will continue to collaborate and utilize sobriety checkpoints and other means to deter, detect and remove impaired drivers from New Hampshire's roadways.


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