Newton Police: Alleged Drunk Driver Says Another 'Regular Human Being' Was Driving His Car

Incidents, May 26

• Police responded to a car crash into a parked car in front of Laurel Street with one of the parties possibly intoxicated. When police arrived, a man was already out of his vehicle and said he wasn’t driving it, contrary to witness statements. When questioned who was driving the vehicle, he said “a regular human being.” He was unable to give police a name, description, sex or any other information on the supposed operator. Police detected a moderate odor of alcohol emanating from this person, and he appeared to have glassy, bloodshot eyes, and was swaying back and forth as he spoke. His speech was slurred and he was lethargic as he spoke to police, often not answering questions or taking an unusually long time to respond to routine questions, such as who was driving. Manuk Melkonyan, 33, 275 Main St., Watertown, was arrested and charged with OUI, and an open container violation. A bottle of Svedka vodka, which was open, was taken from the driver’s side door.
• Police took a report at the front desk for past larceny, with the reporting resident saying he last saw his city blue trash bin at the beginning of May sometime, and noticed it was missing. He just moved to the area and travels a lot for work, so he cannot recall when he last saw it.
• At 9:44 p.m., police pulled a vehicle over for a possible match on a warrant. Running the plate, they found the owner had a warrant out of Boston for failure to appear upon recognizance. Jaime D. Querol, 37, 285 Center St., Jamaica Plain, was arrested on warrant charges of driving an uninsured vehicle.

Incidents, May 27

• Police responded to Kendrick Street for a report of a past breaking and entering to a motor vehicle. She said she parked her car in her driveway at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 26. The following morning she discovered that her vehicle had been broken into. She left the car doors unlocked overnight. Stolen items were two garage door openers, a card key for work and $5 in change.