Arizona man has to drop snake before being placed under arrest
CLOVERDALE — After fleeing police Wednesday afternoon, an Arizona man was found to be armed with an unexpected “weapon” when police caught up with him.
Confronted by Cloverdale Town Marshal Steve Hibler, 52-year-old Michael Holdridge of Phoenix raise his hands to reveal what Hibler estimated to be a 4-to-5-foot snake wrapped around one of his arms.
Holdridge got the snake off of his arm only after being instructed by Hibler to do so.
“Once he threw it on the ground, the snake fled the scene,” Hibler said with a laugh.
Discovering the snake was a bit more than police bargained for when they were initially dispatched to a late-afternoon motor vehicle crash at Stardust Way and Cool Evening Road.
Holdridge, who was allegedly intoxicated, fled the scene before the arrival of emergency personnel.
After fleeing the scene, Holdridge was initially spotted by a woman in her back yard. He was then seen entering a nearby woods.
Hibler eventually spotted and confronted him in a field. Hibler said Holdridge collapsed, claiming to have a heart condition.
He collapsed a second time before he was taken into custody, allegedly also telling police the snake had been a copperhead, that had bitten him and that was the reason for the falls.
Police found no evidence of a snakebite.
Officer Levi App placed Holdridge under arrest and transported him to the Putnam County Jail. He was booked in on charges of driving as a habitual traffic violator, driving while intoxicated-refusal, leaving the scene of a property damage accident and disorderly conduct.