A school bus driver, arrested on charges of drunken driving with a student on board after a crash Thursday afternoon in Haverhill, did not appear for his arraignment in Haverhill District Court.
Court officials say 45-year-old Anzian Arnaud Kamelan of Lowell did not appear on charges of driving while under the influence of alcohol, having an open container of alcohol and child endangerment while under the influence. He was arrested Thursday, around 3 p.m., on Maxwell Street at River Street.
Police quoted the child’s parent as saying Kamelan was driving for Lynn-based Alain Transportation and the firm is registered to a Haverhill man.
A police report on file with the court says a driver of a passenger car told officers he was driving on River Street and “sideswiped by a school van” as he was turning onto James Street. A child, the only passenger in the van, was reportedly not injured and there was no airbag deployment.
According to the report, the child told police “They were on the highway coming into Haverhill when, numerous times, his driver Anzian Kamelan swerved and almost hit a guard rail.” The child added that the driver “would stop and go and swerve towards the breakdown lane” while driving past a pharmacy off River Street. The child told police he saw the driver drink from a clear cup during the ride, but saw him throw “what appeared to be an empty beer can out of the vehicle.” Officer Angel Aviles reported finding “a black bag with an empty vodka bottle” and an empty beer can outside the driver’s door on the road. The patrolman described Kamelan as having bloodshot eyes, red and “had a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his breath.”