A stressed out snowbird from Maryland was arrested after causing a crash near Pinellas Plaza in The Villages.
Wildwood police responded to the scene of the accident at about 6 p.m. Tuesday on County Road 466A at Powell Road, where a black Lexus driven by 52-year-old Elmira Ivanova Holland of North Potomac, Md. struck the rear end of another vehicle stopped at a red light. Another motorist told police he had swerved out of the way to avoid being struck by Holland’s Lexus. A second witness said the eastbound Lexus nearly crossed over the center line and hit her vehicle, according to an arrest report from the Wildwood Police Department.
Holland appeared to be “confused.” She told police she was “very stressed” because “this is a new area to her.”
Officers suspected Holland had been drinking but she initially refused to participate in field sobriety exercises. When she changed her mind and took part in the exercises, she failed. She agreed to provide a breath sample, but would not or could not meet the volume required for a sample.
She was arrested on a charge of driving under the influence and booked at the Sumter County Detention Center. She was released after posting $1,000 bond.
