Drunk Driver Was Over Twice Legal Limit In Starbucks Crash: Cops

EAGAN, MN — A man is accused of driving with twice the legal limit of alcohol in his body before crashing into a Starbucks in Eagan (1480 Central Park Commons Drive), seriously injuring two people. Ihar Daniliuk, 44, of Eagan, was charged Wednesday with two counts of criminal vehicular operation.

On the evening of Aug. 19, Eagan police officers arrived at the scene to find a vehicle with its front-end inside the building. There, Daniliuk admitted to driving the vehicle, police said.

An officer noticed a strong odor of alcohol coming from him, the criminal complaint states.

A preliminary test revealed Daniliuk's breath alcohol concentration at 0.18, more than twice the legal limit of .08. He was hospitalized and treated for foot injuries.

According to the complaint, Daniliuk told police he was headed to a nearby grocery store but while parking, he accidentally hit the gas pedal instead of the brake and accelerated over the curb.

Hitting the curb caused his foot to push harder on the gas pedal, further accelerating his vehicle into the coffee shop, police said.

The crash injured a 29-year-old man from West St. Paul and a 30-year-old woman from Eagan who were sitting outside on the coffee shop patio. Both victims suffered serious injuries and were found on the ground inside the Starbucks.

Daniliuk told police that when he realized he hit them, he ran out of his vehicle to try to help them.

The Eagan woman, Macy Layne Olson, sustained multiple lacerations to her face that required stitches, glass was found in her leg, and the fibula in her right leg was broken.

The West. St Paul man, Stanton Marvin Baldwin, suffered a broken leg, three broken ribs, a fractured spine, internal bleeding, and a dislocated hip. The full extent of his injuries are still being evaluated, police said.

"This appears to be another example of impaired driving which has caused serious injuries to two individuals in our community," Dakota County attorney James Backstrom said in a statement.

Daniliuk made his first appearance in court today and bail in the amount of $150,000 without conditions ($25,000 with conditions) was set by Dakota County District Court Judge Christopher Lehmann.

His next court appearance is set for Sept. 18, according to a news release.