Police in Sag Harbor, New York, arrested and charged NASCAR chairman Brian France with driving under the influence Sunday evening.
Officers in the high-priced Hamptons hamlet say France blew through a stop sign in his 2017 Lexus at 7:30, prompting a traffic stop. France was determined to be in “an intoxicated condition” and arrested. After a subsequent search, he was also found to be in possession of oxycodone, a powerful narcotic pain reliever.
TMZ reports France’s blood alcohol content was more than two times the legal limit, and claims France name-dropped President Donald Trump as he was being arrested.
France spent the night in jail and is now facing charges of aggravated driving while intoxicated (the aggravated charge is reserved for 0.18 BAC or higher) and criminal possession of a controlled substance.
“We are aware of an incident that occurred last night and are in the process of gathering information,” NASCAR said in a statement to ESPN. “We take this as a serious matter and will issue a statement after we have all of the facts.”
In a later statement Monday afternoon, NASCAR said France has “taken an indefinite leave of absence.” His uncle Jim France, who currently serves as NASCAR’s Vice Chairman and Executive Vice President, has assumed the role of interim chairman.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story mistakenly identified Jim France as Brian France’s brother. Jim is Brian’s uncle.