NEWS RELEASE

RIVERSIDE POLICE DEPARTMENT

31 Riverside Road, Riverside, IL 60546

08 December 2014

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Chief Weitzel tweitzel@riverside.il.us

708.447.2127 - Follow RPD on Twitter @pdriverside

Riverside Police Arrest Man for DUI, DUI Drugs Cannabis and Cocaine
Driver ingests multiple drugs and then gets in vehicle and drives
Early Sunday morning on December 7, 2014 at 2:30 a.m., a Riverside Police Officer observed a 2013
Toyota passenger car traveling north on Kimbark Road making a wide turn onto Woodside Road. The
vehicle then traveled south again on Kimbark Road which is a one-way street and only goes southbound.
When the vehicle made the wide turn, it was driving in an entirely wrong lane for approximately 20 feet
before correcting back to the proper lane. When the officer turned and caught up to the vehicle, it
continued driving erratically and completely disregarded the stop sign at the intersection of Woodside and
Longcommon. The vehicle then sped up and blew another stop sign at Longcommon and Forest
continuing westbound on Forest. The vehicle then came to an abrupt stop in front of 50 Forest where it
sat in the middle of the street for several seconds and turned right and completely failed to use the right
turn lane. The officer then stop the vehicle at 50 Forest Avenue.
When the officer approached the vehicle, he asked the driver for his license which he was unable to
produce and fumbled through his wallet which fell to the roadway. When asked to exit the vehicle to
perform field sobriety tests, the driver did so. The officer could smell a strong odor of alcohol coming from
his breath. He could also detect an order of cannabis from inside the vehicle. Field sobriety tests were
completed at the scene and the driver failed all of them.
While conducting an inventory search of the vehicle, police located cannabis lying in plain view on the
front passenger seat. Additionally, they found a glass jar containing a green leafy substance that later
field tested positive for cannabis along with rolling papers. While searching the driver, they located a clear
plastic bag containing a small amount of a white substance which field tested positive for cocaine. Police
found a receipt from a bar called The Vonch Bar and Grill located inside The PoleKatz Gentleman Club in
Bridgeview. The amount of the receipt was for $403.50 and it was dated 12/7/14 at 1:36 a.m. Most of the
receipt was for alcohol.
When the driver, Sahil Desai, was interviewed, he admitted to drinking excessively, ingesting cannabis,
ingesting cocaine, and then getting in his vehicle and driving home

The driver, Sahil J. Desai, 27 of the 11500 block of Brookshire Drive in Orland Park was arrested by
Riverside Police for driving under the influence of alcohol, driving under the influence of drugs,
driving the wrong way on one-way street, improper lane usage, disobeying a stop sign at two
separate locations, improper turn, and no proof of vehicle insurance, possession of cannabis,
possession of a controlled substance (cocaine). The drug charges are felonies and the defendant
was held over for bond court on Monday morning. All the drug evidence was collected as evidence
and submitted to the Illinois State Police Crime Lab for analysis.
Riverside Police Chief Thomas Weitzel stated, Mr. Desai was totally obliterated when stopped by
Riverside Police and was slurring his speech, difficult to understand, and could barely stand up. By his
own admissions, he was intoxicated by excessive drinking and taking illegal drugs. He had been smoking
cannabis prior to getting in his vehicle and driving. If this individual had been not stopped by police, I am
convinced he either would have injured or killed an innocent motorist on the roadway or killed or injured
himself. This arrest supports my belief that all law enforcement agencies in the State of Illinois not only
have to have an expert on staff for DUI but they also must have certified Drug Recognition Experts
Officers (DRE) to assist in the arrest and processing of defendants who are driving under the influence of
drugs. Currently, there are only 50 such DRE officers in the State of Illinois. Riverside has such an officer
trained and assigned to the permanent midnight shift.

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