Drunk Florida Woman Crashes Into Airplane After Ramming Down Airport Security Fence With Her Car
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is more than 16 years old, but it seems some are still trying to play it in real life.
A Florida woman was arrested following an alleged drunken joyride that caused thousands of dollars in damages at an airport.
Mary Dostal, 40, reportedly drove through the fencing of Sarasota Bradenton International Airport late Wednesday evening, around 9:45 p.m., according to ABC Action News. This set off an alarm, mobilizing both the onsite security and the Manatee Country Sheriff, which responded immediately. Dostal then reportedly tore around the airfield on camera for almost two minutes, according to WFLA New Channel 8, during which time she reportedly collided with the back of an airplane owned by a flight school operating out of the airport, causing up to $15,000 in damages.
From there, Dostal allegedly tore back through the fence in a different spot, and away from the airport. Authorities caught up with Dostal five minutes from the airport, pulling over her (presumably damaged) vehicle. Deputies reported smelling alcohol on Dostal and finding an open box of wine in her passenger footwell. According to the arrest report, Dostal believed she was in Ohio, and insisted that she'd only had one glass of wine—the box was from the day prior, she said. A breathalyzer contested this, giving a minimum reading of 0.140 BAC—nearly double Florida's 0.08 threshold for drunk driving.
Dostal was booked into Manatee County Jail, where there are presumably no manatees. ABC reports that she has since bonded out. According to the owner of the plane Dostal damaged on her drunken detour, things could have been much worse.
"It could have been a lot worse than it was and no one was hurt, no one was injured so that's what matters," explained Jacob Kyser of Universal Flight Services, owner of the plane, according to ABC. "There's a fuel tank. There are several other aircrafts on the ramp. She could have hit all those airplanes, but she didn't obviously."
