A Fairfield man was arrested for driving the wrong way on the Merritt Parkway early Thursday morning, according to the Connecticut State Police.
Troopers received 911 calls reporting a wrong-way driver on Route 15 north near Exit 55 in Milford just before 2 a.m. Thursday. Troopers from Troop G and I responded to the area to locate the vehicle.
Troop G received reports of a motor vehicle crash where a vehicle swerved out of the way of a wrong-way driver and struck a guardrail. There were no injuries reported in this crash, state police said.
Police were able to stop the wrong-way vehicle, a 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe, in the left lane near the Sikorsky Bridge in Stratford, state police said. The driver was identified as Carlos Ferreira, 59, of Fairfield.
Ferreira was allegedly driving on a suspended license and is the subject of a re-arrest warrant. He did not pass a field sobriety test and was allegedly in possession of a narcotics-like substance, state police said.
He was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, driving the wrong way on a divided highway, possession of a controlled substance, operating a motor vehicle on under suspension, operating without a license and reckless driving. He was also charged with second-degree failure to appear.
He was held on a $2,500 bond for the charges from the alleged wrong-way driving and $500 for his failure to appear charge. He is scheduled to appear in Bridgeport Superior Court on Thursday.
