A 28-year-old man faces a misdemeanor driving while intoxicated charge and several traffic violations after Cayuga County sheriff's deputies said he left a crash scene in Summerhill and initially presented forged identification.
The Cayuga County Sheriff's Office identified the man as Otto Rocael Vasquez-Ramirez of Guatemala after initially receiving documents bearing the name Omar Vasquez-Alvarado, according to a corrected arrest release issued Monday.
Deputies and state police responded to Salt Road shortly before 11 a.m. Friday for a reported crash with injuries. Dispatchers were told that a man had climbed out of the vehicle and run south from the scene, the release said.
Officers found the man farther south at a residence. Deputies said they detected the odor of alcohol and that emergency medical personnel took him to Cortland Hospital for an evaluation.
The sheriff's office said the vehicle had been traveling north when it crossed into the oncoming lane, entered a ditch embankment and struck a residential mailbox. No one else was in the vehicle.
Authorities arranged for the man to report to the county Public Safety Building on Sunday for processing. Deputies said further investigation determined that he had a forged Social Security card and a forged Guatemalan identification card bearing the Vasquez-Alvarado name.
Vasquez-Ramirez was charged with first-offense driving while intoxicated, a misdemeanor, along with violations alleging unlicensed operation, leaving the scene of a property-damage crash, failure to keep right and operating an uninspected vehicle. He was issued appearance tickets for Summerhill Town Court, according to the release.
The sheriff's office said U.S. Border Patrol helped establish his identity and determined that he had previously been deported in 2017 and did not have current legal status in the United States. After local processing, he was turned over to U.S. Customs and Border Protection for further investigation and processing over alleged federal violations.
Anyone with information may contact the Cayuga County Sheriff's Office at 315-253-1222 or submit an anonymous tip through the county's Send a Tip page or SaferWatch app.
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