Former UA quarterback Willie Tuitama was arrested Saturday on an extreme DUI charge, police said today.
The University of Arizona senior, 21, was pulled over in the area of North Campbell Avenue and East Hedrick Drive at 2:20 a.m., said Officer Chuck Rydzak, a Tucson Police Department spokesman.
The sergeant who pulled over Tuitama was flagged down by McDonald’s employees near Campbell and East Fort Lowell Road, Rydzak said. The employees said there was a person who was possibly intoxicated in the drive thru.
At that time, the sergeant saw a Dodge Magnum pull out and head south on Campbell Avenue, Rydzak said.
The driver — later determined to be Tuitama — stopped at a red light and began making a right turn but stopped and turned the wheel to go straight, running through the red light, he said.
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During the stop, there was evidence to indicate that a DUI investigation was necessary, Rydzak said, though he wouldn’t identify that evidence.
As a result, Tuitama was arrested on suspicion of DUI and extreme DUI. He had a passenger, but that person wasn’t accused of wrongdoing.
Tuitama was cited and released, and his car was impounded.
The Stockton, Calif., native was arrested two years ago on a charge of being a minor in possession of alcohol — he was 20 years old at the time.
In that incident Tuitama admitted to drinking and driving before he was contacted by University of Arizona police. He handed over two bottles of alcohol, Arizona Daily Star archives show.
He completed a diversion program and was not disciplined by the team.
Tuitama’s arrest comes at a particularly bad time as he is expected to compete in front of NFL scouts Saturday on campus at the UA; a solid showing could boost his draft stock.
Tuitama threw for a school record 9,216 yards and 67 touchdowns during four seasons as the Wildcats’ starter.
He left Tucson in January to train at Competitive Edge Sports, a training facility situated outside Atlanta.
He spent more than a month there before returning to town. He was not invited to the NFL Combine, putting an even greater emphasis on his on-campus drills.
Scouts view Tuitama, a 6-foot-3-inch, 220-pounder, as a late-round pick or free-agent signee.
Tuitama was last enrolled at the UA in the fall 2008 semester. He promised his parents, Lui and Nancy, that he will earn his degree. He is a semester away from graduating.
