SandyMaloneMiami, FL – Justin Bieber’s bodyguard was arrested early Thursday for driving under the influence after he ran into a Miami-Dade police car and then fled the scene.
Michael Arana, Bieber’s chief of security, crashed his SUV into the back of the police car around 2:30 a.m. on Nov. 30, badly smashing the entire rear end of the cruiser.
Both police officers in the police car were injured. One had to be airlifted to a nearby hospital after he was extricated from the police car, WFOR reported.
Arana did not stop after hitting the police car, but instead tried to leave the scene of the crime.
He was stopped by the police five blocks later, after trying to cross the center median in the wrong direction.
“Miami-Dade Police officers were in the area totally unrelated to this investigation. They heard and saw the crash. They were able to stop the vehicle that had collided with the Miami-Dade Police vehicle,” said Miami-Dade Police Department Detective Lee Cowart.
Arana admitted that he’d been drinking, but could not be given a breath test due to injuries to his mouth. He refused a blood test, police said.
Police found receipts for alcohol purchased after midnight in Arana’s pockets.
Bieber has employed Arana for three-and-a-half years and had great things to say about his bodyguard in a video called “Secret Lives from The Watchtower.”
“Mikey is, he’s a leader and being a security guard you need to be a leader. You need to take control of situations and understand how to communicate and he’s just the best at it,” says Bieber in the video.
The police officers Arana injured in the crash were treated and released from the hospital.
The Daily Mail reported that Arana has had two previous run-ins with police in Miami-Dade county. He was arrested for disorderly conduct in 2007 and 2013. Both charges were later dismissed.
Arana picked up Bieber from jail in 2014 after the singer was arrested in Miami Beach for DUI.
Bieber’s “leader” has been charged with three counts of driving under the influence, and three counts of leaving the scene of an accident, according to WFOR.
You can see the video of the crash scene below: