Over 70 DUI charges laid over weekend

All of the incidents involved impaired drivers, each had licences suspended for 3 days

The Ontario Provincial Police wrapped up a busy weekend after laying more than 70 impaired driving charges they reported as early as Friday afternoon.

The OPP also stopped drivers in several bizarre incidents, including apprehending an 11-year-old boy on Hwy. 400 on Saturday night who had been playing Grand Theft Auto and decided to try driving in the real world.

Another incident occurred on Friday night, as an impaired driver crashed his car into the OPP parking lot in Port Credit, Mississauga, and then told police, “I was just following my GPS,” OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt reported in a tweet. On the QEW, an impaired man was stopped for speeding “well in excess” of 150 kilometres/hour at around 3 a.m. on Sunday, resulting in a 90-day vehicle impoundment and licence suspension, Schmidt said in a Periscope video on Sunday afternoon.

There were several crashes on Hwys. 400, 401 and 404 that also involved impaired drivers.

A crash occurred at around 4:30 a.m. Sunday on Hwy. 400 near Hwy. 401, where an impaired man over 80 was involved in a single vehicle collision. There was another crash at

An impaired driver crashed his car into the OPP parking lot in Port Credit and told police he was just following his GPS

around the same time on Hwy. 401 near Weston Rd. The driver, a woman over 80, was impaired and hit a barrier. Neither driver sustained serious injuries.

Two vehicles collided on Hwy. 404 at around 6:30 a.m. Sunday as well.

One of the cars made an unsafe lane change and clipped the other one, causing both cars to lose control and roll over. The driver who made the lane change, a 28-year-old woman, was charged with impaired driving and taken to hospital with minor injuries.

All the drivers charged had their vehicles towed and impounded and had their licences suspended for three days.

The OPP is ramping up its 11th annual holiday R.I.D.E Checks program, which was officially launched last Thursday.

It involves increased surveillance on the roads and random checks to encourage safe and sober driving.

OPP officers are looking out for distracted drivers and people under the influence of drugs or alcohol.