Saugus man nabbed for driving drunk, crashing into car

SAUGUS – A Mount Vernon Street man was arraigned Monday for allegedly crashing into his neighbor’s car while drunk, then fleeing to the Belmonte Middle School to pick up his daughter.Alex Blanco, 34, of 34 Mt. Vernon St., was arrested and charged with operating under the influence of alcohol, negligent operation of a vehicle and leaving the scene of an accident with property damage.Police say Blanco struck a parked car outside of his neighbor’s house at about 2:30 p.m. Friday and continued driving to his home about five houses away.The car belonged to a 19-year-old man, whose mother heard the crash and saw Blanco drive away, police said. She drove to his house, confronted him and together they walked back to view the damage, which included a broken mirror. The woman told police Blanco staggered and had a strong odor of alcohol on his breath.Blanco allegedly told the woman that he would go back to his vehicle to get his registration to exchange information. Blanco allegedly walked back to his house, tripped on some stairs, then got into his minivan and drove away. She called police.Within a few minutes, police got a call from someone at the corner of Adams Court and Dow Street, who reported that a van, which happened to match the description of Blanco’s vehicle, was stopped in the middle of the intersection and hadn’t moved in a while.Police arrived and found two adults talking to Blanco who turned out to be relatives. Blanco had allegedly tried to pick up his daughter, who called her aunt because she was scared of getting into the van because she thought her father was intoxicated, according to police.Blanco failed field sobriety tests and was swaying back and forth, police said. Police notified the Department of Children and Families of the situation because officers believe he’s driven drunk with his two daughters in the vehicle several times.Blanco’s two daughters stayed in the care of their aunt after his arrest.Lynn District Court Judge Albert Conlon ordered Blanco back to court April 13 for a pre-trial hearing after releasing him on personal recognizance.