Crash detected, drunk driver arrested

Chelsea Mitchell Arrests & Apprehensions

Bricia Mejia

Police arrested a man suspected of driving drunk after Sonitrol Pacific detected his crash into a restaurant secured with audio sensors on January 10.

Monitoring Operator Bricia Mejia received an alert from the dining room area of the restaurant.  She heard a loud crashing noise, followed by a man’s voice and took action.

Portland Police were on site in minutes of Mejia’s call and found a man had drove into the restaurant.  The man was taken to the hospital in an ambulance.  Police followed and charged the man with driving under the influence.

Mejia’s fast response to the impact-activated audio security alert allowed restaurant employees to respond quickly and get the wall boarded up before any further damage could be done.

This incident brings Mejia’s detection-to-apprehension total to 50 suspects.  She joined the Sound Security team in 2008 and is an expert at monitoring audio detection technology.