POLK COUNTY, Fla. – A soccer coach at a Florida boarding school is facing a DUI charge after he failed multiple sobriety tests during a traffic stop, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
A deputy pulled over 38-year-old Joshua Kiper, of Plant City, on SR 60 near Fox Creek Drive in Mulberry around 12:15 a.m. Saturday after he noticed the white Toyota van Kiper was driving swerving in and out of its lane of traffic, sheriff’s office officials said.
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The deputy immediately noticed the smell of alcohol on Kiper’s breath and said he had bloodshot, watery eyes with dilated pupils, according to an arrest report. The deputy asked Kiper if he’d had anything to drink or consumed any drugs, to which he replied he had not and that he’d only taken an antibiotic for a toothache, the report said.
Deputies then asked Kiper to conduct multiple field sobriety tests, none of which he was able to pass, according to the sheriff’s office.
Kiper was arrested and taken to the Polk County Jail, where he was booked on a charge of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, the report shows.
Kiper told deputies he’s a soccer coach at IMG Academy, a boarding school in Manatee County.
“We expect more from people who not only work closely with children, but who are also role models to children,” said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd. “Luckily, he was pulled over before he could hurt or kill anyone, including himself.”