A Carroll doctor faces charges in District Court for Guthrie County for allegedly tearing up a yard near Panora while driving drunk. Forty-one-year Nicholas Kuiper, a surgeon for St. Anthony Regional Hospital, was booked into the Guthrie County jail early Friday morning on multiple charges, including second-degree criminal mischief, a class D felony, and first-offense operating while intoxicated and eluding, both serious misdemeanors. Guthrie County Sheriff, Marty Arganbright, says the incident began at approximately 1:08 a.m. when law enforcement was dispatched to the 2800 block of Highway 44.
According to Arganbright, the deputy reviewed video evidence recorded by the property owner and the Panora officer left to search for the suspect vehicle. Arganbright says the officer located the Hummer parked on Highway 44 about 20 minutes later.
Kuiper allegedly showed signs of intoxication and was taken into custody. A breath test revealed his blood alcohol content (BAC) at the time of his arrest was .201, more than 2.5 times the legal limit. Kuiper was released on bond later in the day. If found guilty, he faces up to five years in prison and $11,250 in fines.
