Bridgewater Man, Retired Cop Charged Again With DUI In Raritan

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — A Bridgewater man and retired Mountainside Police Officer, who is already facing charges for fatally hitting a runner while intoxicated in Raritan in September, was charged again with driving under the influence last month.

The most recent arrest occurred on Feb. 8 on Old York Road in Raritan, according to information from police.

Police said a caller reported a drunk driver in a Toyota Rav4 in the area around 8:45 p.m. The same caller then said the driver, later identified as Kevin Betyeman, 56, was pulling into the Quick Chek parking lot on West Somerset Street and had driven over a curb while doing so, according to Raritan Police Sgt. Everett Holt.

Raritan Police Officers found the Toyota parked in the middle of the parking lot and not in a parking space, said Holt.

As officers pulled behind the Toyota, they noticed the driver was trying to drive in reverse, said Holt.

Officers stopped Betyeman and while speaking with him, officers saw signs that he had been driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, said Holt. Police put Betyeman through a series of field sobriety tests and then arrested him for driving while intoxicated due to alcohol or drugs, according to Holt.

A urine sample that Betyeman gave at police headquarters is awaiting analysis at the New Jersey State Police Forensics Laboratory.

Betyeman was charged with driving while intoxicated, reckless driving, careless driving and failing to remove snow or ice from his vehicle.

Betyeman is also facing charges of driving while intoxicated after fatally hitting an avid runner, Celeste Andresen, 60, of San Manuel, Ariz., while in a marked crosswalk in Raritan on Sept. 18, 2020, the SCPO said. Read More: Drunk Driver From Bridgewater ID'd In Fatal Crash: PD

The fatal crash was in the same location, near the Liquor Barn on Old York Road, as the February DUI charge. However, Betyeman was not served on either occasion at the Liquor Barn.

A criminal complaint was filed against Betyeman Monday in the fatal crash. The complaint alleges his blood-alcohol content was above the legal limit several hours after the collision and he denied having consumed alcohol when asked by police at the scene. The blood-alcohol content is not being released at this time as it is part of an ongoing investigation.

Betyeman had previously served with the Mountainside Police Department for 25 years before retiring in July 2019. Read More: Bridgewater Man Charged In Fatal DWI Crash Is Ex-Cop: Officials

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