License Plate Leads Police to Truck in Montana Crash

A New Year’s Day crash into a power pole left at least 1,000 Butte, Mont., homes in the dark, but a license plate left at the scene shed some light on who might have been responsible.

Police say 36-year-old Erik Wayne Mahkuk of Butte fled after the crash near the intersection of Motor View and Ram roads in south Butte.

The Montana Standard reports that later that morning police arrived at Mahkuk’s residence about the same time Mahkuk pulled up in his Chevy Silverado pickup.

Police say Mahkuk failed field-sobriety tests and was arrested. Authorities say it would be Mahkuk’s fourth DUI, making it a felony offense.