Two Atwater DUI crashes within hours cause injuries, arrest made, police say

Two Saturday night crashes in Atwater are believed to be the result of driving while intoxicated, according to the Atwater Police Department.

A head-on vehicle collision was reported at 7:24 p.m. Saturday at the Applegate Road and Commerce Avenue Highway 99 overpass, according to a news release.

Ruben Romo, a 45-year-old Atwater resident, was driving south on Applegate Road when he crossed over into the oncoming lanes and struck a 2017 Honda CRV, the release states.

A driver and passenger of the CRV from Atwater were transported to Emmanuel Medical Center in Turlock for treatment of minor injuries, according to the release.

Officers determined Romo was impaired while he was driving, the release states. Romo was booked into Merced County jail on suspicion of felony driving while intoxicated with alcohol, and was in custody Monday in lieu of $200,103 bail, according to jail records.

The second crash occurred about two hours later when Francisco Garibay-Rios, a 34-year-old Winton resident, struck three parked cars in the 1400 block of Winton Way and lost control of his vehicle, which rolled over, according to the release. Officers also suspected Garibay-Rios to be driving impaired.

Garibay-Rios has an extensive history with DUIs, according to jail records. He has been arrested several times on DUI charges since 2009. And he was last convicted of driving under the influence on Jan. 24, 2014. serving a year in county jail.

As a result of the crash, which blocked both southbound lanes of Winton Way, Garibay-Rios was injured and transported to an area hospital. Traffic was diverted from the area until about 11 p.m. as crews cleaned up the scene.

This story was originally published September 24, 2018 at 9:29 AM.