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Justin Bieber arrested for 'drag racing and driving under the influence' Justin Bieber arrested for 'drag racing and driving under the influence'
(about 4 hours later)
Justin Bieber has been arrested accused of drag racing in a yellow Lamborghini and driving under the influence in Miami Beach. Justin Bieber has been charged with drunken driving, resisting arrest and driving without a valid licence, police in Miami said on Thursday.
The Miami Beach police department confirmed 19-year-old Bieber's arrest on Thursday morning in a tweet on its official Twitter page. Bieber, 19, was arrested in the early hours of the morning after he was caught drag racing a yellow Lamborghini, according to police. Officers said that he smelled of alcohol and swore when he was pulled over.
Miami Dade-Police spokesman Sgt. Bobby Hernandez has told WSVN that officers saw two cars racing at 4:09am on 22 January. Miami Beach police chief Raymond Martinez said officers estimated Bieber was driving at "anywhere up to 55 to 60mph" when stopped in a 30mph zone. He was detained at 4.09am ET.
According to Hernandez, two vehicles had allegedly been used to block off an area to race. He says the second car was a red Ferrari, and that driver was also arrested. Both cars were towed. Martinez told reporters that Bieber, who has released three studio albums and two books, was "a little belligerent, using some choice words", when police arrested him.
Hernandez also added that 19-year-old Bieber failed a field sobriety test and was taken to the Miami Beach police station for a Breathalyzer and processing. Bieber will be transported soon to the Miami-Dade County jail. Bieber's friend, Khalil Sharieff, was also arrested on a charge of driving under the influence. Police said Sharieff, who tweeted at 3.07am Thursday that he was "Just livin life, blessed", was racing Bieber in a rented red Lamborghini. Initial press reports stating that Sharieff was driving a Ferrari appear to have been in error.
Bieber is no stranger to controversy, most recently the police searched his house just over a week ago in relation to an alleged "egging" incident. What started as the investigation into the prank took a more serious turn when police raiding his home on a vandalism charge arrested a member of his entourage for alleged possession of cocaine. The rapper Lil Za – real name Xavier Smith – was taken into custody in lieu of a $20,000 bail charge. The Miami Beach police department published Bieber's arrest report on its own Twitter feed.
In October, prosecutors declined to charge Bieber after a neighbor complained he drove recklessly through the area, while prosecutors in November 2012 also declined to charge the singer after a paparazzo accused him of punching and hitting him after leaving a Calabasas movie theater. The report said two black SUVs had blocked Pine Tree Drive in Miami Beach, which "facilitated an open road", enabling Bieber and Sharieff to race.
In July, Swedish police said they had found drugs and a stun gun on the pop singer's tour bus during Bieber's tumultuous 2013 European tour, which also included a monkey detention, a Holocaust museum furore and a health scare. When the arrested officer attempted to stop Bieber – whose hit As Long As You Love Me delivers the tender message that a simple love can defy all hardship a couple might face – the singer inquired: "Why the fuck are you doing this?"
Bieber continued to ask: "What the fuck did I do? Why did you stop me?" and is said to have later assured the officer: "I ain't got no fucking weapons."
The police report said there was "an odor of alcohol emanating" from Bieber's breath. The 19-year-old reportedly had a "flushed face [and] bloodshot eyes" when he was being taken the police station. Police also learned Bieber had an expired Georgia driving licence.
Martinez said Bieber "did acknowledge that he did take a prescription medication and that he had been smoking marijuana and that he did consume a beer".
Bieber has written two autobiographies. His debut, First Step 2 Forever was published in 2010, documenting his rise to fame. His second autobiography, Just Getting Started, was published in 2012. It documented the two years that had elapsed since 2010.
Earlier this month Bieber was accused of throwing eggs at a neighbour's house in California. The singer endured a turbulent 2013, when he briefly retired from public life and lashed out at a photographer in London as his bodyguards escorted him into a car.