Berkeley Driver Painted In Gold Arrested On DUI Charges
BERKELEY (CBS SF) -- California Highway Patrol officers who thought they had seen everything have posted a social media message about a driver who was spray-painted in gold and allegedly struck three cars on eastbound Interstate Highway 80 in Berkeley on Wednesday night.
In a Facebook message entitled, "It's Never a Dull Day for Oakland CHP," officers said 21-year-old Damaj Cook was arrested on suspicion of misdemeanor hit-and-run and driving under the influence after the incident.
CHP officers said an off-duty police officer who witnessed the collisions east of Ashby Avenue on Highway 80 then followed Cook to the Central Avenue off-ramp in Richmond, where the wheel of Cook's car fell off, forcing him to stop because his car was disabled.
He was arrested there, according to CHP spokesman Officer Sean Wilkenfeld.
In their Facebook message, CHP officers said that when officers were en route to the scene, they received a description of the suspect being "gold."
The officers, who posted photos of Cook, said, "Well the description was certainly correct as the suspect was covered head to toe in gold spray paint!"
Wilkenfeld said Cook told officers that he was on his way to a photo shoot.
Cook and the three drivers whose cars he struck weren't injured in the collisions, according to Wilkenfeld.
He said Cook was taken to a hospital for observation but was later medically cleared.
Cook initially was placed in Santa Rita Jail in Dublin in lieu of $10,000 bail, but Wilkenfeld said he doesn't know if he is still in custody.
He's tentatively scheduled to be arraigned on April 22.
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