Connecticut State Police have issued a formal apology to a man they arrested for driving more than 130 mph when it turned out he was at home in bed at the time of the incident.
Azmir Djurkovic faced multiple moving violations, including reckless endangerment, engaging police in a pursuit and interfering with an officer, after cops said he failed to stop when they clocked him driving 132 mph on Interstate 91 in Cromwell.
Officers originally said that when they located the 19-year-old driver by his car’s registration, he confessed that he was in a hurry on account of being late for a job interview.
But Djurkovic’s lawyers at Carlson & Dumeer, LLC, announced Friday that all the charges were dropped after they demonstrated “major visual differences” between the Mercedes police sought and the defendant’s car. They also said they were able to prove Djurkovic was at home when the alleged violations occurred shortly before 9 a.m. on June 4.
Connecticut State Police Col. Daniel Loughman admitted on Friday that the claims made against Djurkovic had been wrong.
“An arrest was made on this day, and upon further review, it was determined that errors may have been made in the investigation and that a prosecution should not proceed on this matter,” the colonel’s statement reads. “We recognize the distress this incident has caused Mr. Djurkovic and his family. We offer a sincere apology to him and those directly impacted.”
According to Loughman, an internal affairs investigation is underway to determine “if policies were followed, and if corrective action is needed.”
The story of Djurkovic’s arrest was picked up by numerous national publications due to the peculiarity of the suspect’s alleged excuse for speeding.
But according to the Hartford Courant, an attorney for Djurkovic said his client never confessed to speeding during his brief conversation with police and in fact told them he couldn’t be the driver because he hadn’t even left his house that day.
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