Andrew Tahmooressi, Marine freed from Mexican prison, arrested in Georgia on DUI charges

Andrew Tahmooressi, the Marine reservist who was released in October after spending seven months in a Mexican prison, has been arrested in Georgia and charged with driving under the influence.

Mr. Tahmooressi, who served in two combat tours in Afghanistan, was arrested Wednesday night in Emanuel County after police allegedly found an open container of alcohol in his vehicle when he was pulled over for passing in a no-passing zone, The Los Angeles Times reported.

“As a result of the traffic stop, Tahmooressi was arrested and charged with the misdemeanor traffic offenses of Driving Under the Influence, Reckless Driving, Improper Passing and Open Container Violation,” according to a statement by the Emanuel County Sheriff’s Office.

The 26-year-old sergeant was held overnight at the Emanuel County Sheriff’s Detention Center and released after posting a $4,000 property bond on Thursday.

Mr. Tahmooressi made national headlines last March when he was arrested by Mexican authorities at the San Ysidro border crossing after guns and ammunition were found in his pickup truck. He insisted that he crossed the border by mistake and had not intended to smuggle the weapons, The Times reported.

On Oct. 31, a judge ordered Mr. Tahmooressi’s release from the prison in Tecate so that he could return to the U.S. and get treatment for PTSD.

His spokesman, Jonathan Franks, posted a message to Twitter early Thursday morning, confirming the arrest: “We are aware that Andrew Tahmooressi is under arrest for various traffic related offenses. The family again reminds all that he is suffering from a significant mental illness and respectfully requests privacy. We all remain committed to getting him the help he needs.”

Hours later, Mr. Franks followed up with another message that took a much less cordial tone.

“I’d like to ask my colleagues in the media to remember Andrew #Tahmooressi is suffering from a severe mental illness as the proximate result of serving his country with distinction — he is not something shiny for you to hold up to ridicule tabloid style,” he wrote. “This neither justifies viral coverage nor chasing him with cameras. The family and those of us around him are committed to getting him the care he needs and, to be frank, over dramatization of this by the press is not helping here. This young man does not deserve to be held up to ridicule as the result of his mental illness.”