WATCH: Yavapai County Deputy stops suspected DUI wrong way driver

PHOENIX — A Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office deputy stopped a wrong-way driver on Highway 69 near Humboldt, authorities said.

The deputy spotted the vehicle traveling against traffic just after noon on Thursday. When the deputy realized that the driver wasn’t going to stop, he positioned his patrol vehicle directly in the oncoming motorist’s path, according to a YCSO statement.

A Yavapai County deputy stopped this wrong way driver. The driver was arrested on suspected DUI. pic.twitter.com/dEavS7hTLw

— KTAR News 92.3 (@KTAR923) April 24, 2026

The driver eventually noticed the deputy’s emergency lights and sirens and slowed down but did not come to a complete stop. The vehicle continued forward at approximately 5 mph before bumping into the deputy’s patrol car, the dashcam shows.

“You’re on the wrong side of the road, sir,” said the deputy to the driver, as heard in the dashcam.

The driver’s response is drowned out by radio static from the deputy’s car.

Officers from the Arizona Department of Public Safety took over the investigation.

DPS troopers arrested the driver, a man in his late 70s, on suspicion of driving under the influence.

No injuries were reported in the incident, which authorities credited to the deputy’s quick thinking and willingness to place himself at risk to protect other motorists.

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