On Saturday March 21st at 2:15 a.m., Scottsdale Police Dispatch received numerous 911 calls reporting a black Honda Accord driving northbound in the southbound lanes of the 101 freeway at Shea. Moments later, the black Honda sedan was observed by Scottsdale police officers driving the wrong way on the 101 freeway at Raintree.
One Scottsdale patrol unit was able to stop at the southbound Pima/Princess on-ramp to the 101 freeway. As the black Honda Accord passed the patrol car, the officer successfully deployed stop sticks and deflated the tires of the suspect vehicle.
The driver of the Honda Accord was identified as Venkata N. Nukala (10-15-77). Nukala showed signs of impairment and he told officers that he believed that he was on his way home to Gilbert. Nukala had a suspended driver’s license due to a previous DUI. Nakala was arrested for Aggravated DUI and Endangerment. Thankfully, no collisions or injuries resulted from this incident.