Shocking footage shows moment Denver cops find three kids in trunk of car during DUI stop
A Colorado man has been arrested after being pulled over for reckless driving by police, who then found three kids in the trunk of his car.
Body camera footage of the January 23 incident shows officers approaching Thomas Michael Raiola’s vehicle and questioning him, before he admits he was “acting like an idiot.”
“You’re lucky you didn’t hit somebody,” replies the officer, who then questions him on whether he is drunk, due to the smell of alcohol coming from his car.
Raiola, 40, is seen refusing the officer’s request to complete some “voluntary roadside maneuvers.” He then tells officers that three children are hiding in the trunk of the car.
“Yes, you read that right,” the Westminster Police Department wrote in an online post. “Sure enough, three kids were in the trunk. We’d like to point out it was also freezing temps outside during this stop.”
The children were found unharmed and several bottles of alcohol were allegedly recovered from inside the vehicle.
“You didn’t think that’d have been a good idea to say something before?” the officer asks Raiola at the end of the clip.
Raiola was arrested on suspicion of DUI, reckless driving, failure to provide a valid insurance and three counts of child abuse.
He was transported to Adams County Jail. Child Protection Services was contacted and the kids were released to their family.
