A Centre County man police say caused a crash that critically injured a child Saturday in Spring Township admitted he was under the influence of alcohol and marijuana at the time, according to court documents made available on Monday.
Esmanbek J. Umarov, 25, of Benner Township, was driving a Mercedes SUV northbound on the 800 block of Pleasantview Boulevard at about 3:15 p.m. when he attempted to pass a vehicle in a no passing area, township police wrote in an affidavit of probable cause. Umarov crossed into the southbound lane and struck a Ford Edge head on.
A 12-year-old boy who was in the passenger seat of the Edge was entrapped after the crash and had to be extricated by firefighters, according to the affidavit and a police press release. He was flown by LifeFlight helicopter to Geisinger Medical Center in Danville to be treated for critical injuries.
The woman who was driving the Edge was taken to Mount Nittany Medical Center with moderate injuries.
Security camera footage from a nearby restaurant and witness statements confirmed that Umarov crossed over the double yellow line in an attempt to pass a Ford Explorer when he crashed into the Edge, then went off the road and hit a parked Honda CR-V, according to the affidavit. Both the Explorer and CR-V sustained damage.
Speaking to police at the scene, Umarov said he was trying to turn into the restaurant parking lot. An officer observed an odor of alcohol on Umarov’s breath during the conversation, according to the affidavit.
Umarov, who sustained injuries to his hand and elbow in the crash, performed unsatisfactorily on field sobriety tests and declined a preliminary breath test, police wrote. He was taken to Mount Nittany Medical Center, where he agreed to a breath test that showed he had an unspecified blood alcohol content above the legal limit of .08, according to the affidavit.
He consented to a blood test but only for alcohol and “made mention of smoking marijuana,” police wrote. An officer later received a warrant to conduct a second blood draw for controlled substances.
After being informed he was under arrest, Umarov told police he had been at a bar in State College before the crash and that he also smoked marijuana “recently,” according to the affidavit.
Umarov is charged with a felony count of aggravated assault, misdemeanor counts of recklessly endangering another person and DUI and summary offenses of careless and reckless driving.
He was arraigned on Saturday night by District Judge Kelley Gillette-Walker, who denied bail, citing “extremely serious charges [and] serious public safety risk.”
He is detained at the Centre County Correctional Facility. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Nov. 19.
