RIVERSIDE - A Riverside man driving a bulletproof car was charged Thursday with driving under the influence of alcohol, police said.
Murat Yumlu, 51, also was charged with improper lane usage and faces a second charge of DUI for blowing over the legal limit of .08, police said.
Police at 1:28 a.m. saw a black 2016 GMC SUV traveling north on First Avenue near Riverside Brookfield High School. The car was swerving in its lane and crossed the double yellow into oncoming traffic four times before police made a stop at First Avenue and 31st Street, police said.
The police officer who approached the vehicle noticed that it had extremely thick windows that appeared to be bulletproof.
The officer asked the driver for his driver's license, and during the conversation the driver had a hard time pulling the window down because it was bullet resistant. He told police he purchased the vehicle with bulletproof windows and had subsequently bulletproofed the entire car because he did not want to get shot in these dangerous times, police said.
The car had remote controls for different aspects of the vehicle's bulletproof mechanisms. The car also was outfitted with sirens, but no emergency lights.
Yumlu had alcohol on his breath, bloodshot eyes and difficulty conversing with the officer. He admitted to drinking alcohol before driving, police said. Yumlu failed all roadside testing. He took a Breathalyzer test and had a blood alcohol content of .149, police said.