EVERETT — After several 911 calls reporting a suspected impaired driver on Highway 527, Everett Police deployed a drone camera to track the suspect vehicle, eventually leading to an adult male’s arrest.
Everett Police posted the following video of the drone tracking the suspect vehicle, including the radio traffic of officers communicating the suspect’s location to presage the arrest.
According to Everett Police spokesperson, Officer Natalie Given, multiple people called 911 to report a truck swerving into oncoming traffic traveling southbound on Highway 527. Given tells the EverettPost.com, “One initially reported he was stopped at (traffic) light for 5 minutes slumped over before continuing southbound on 19th Ave. He was also reportedly hitting curbs.”
While patrol officers were en route to the area, the drone operator was able to locate the vehicle and observe the reported driving behavior.
The drone operator also saw the vehicle pulling into a residential driveway and rear-ending a car parked there. The owner of the parked car whose vehicle was rear ended in their driveway was unknown to the impaired driver.
After a preliminary investigation, the driver was ultimately arrested and booked into the Snohomish County Jail for Driving Under the Influence. The driver was an 18-year-old male. He was booked into the Snohomish County Jail for DUI (liquor) and Reckless Driving.
The Everett Police Department’s Drone as First Responder Program (DFR) deploys police operated drones to emergency scenes, providing real-time aerial intelligence to responding officers. This drone-related arrest occurred around 2 p.m. on August 20th, 2026.