Washington, D.C. (Wednesday, January 4, 2022) – A Metro train operator has been suspended from the job accused of being intoxicated on the job.  Damon Keith Roberts, Jr. was arrested December 23rd.

Published reports cite an email from Metro indicating the operator had been suspended and cannot return to work.  The alleged incident happened December 23rd .  Roberts is accused of missing a stop and stalling ut for a half-hour with passengers onboard.

Reports indicate Roberts was arrested after transit controllers learned that a Blue Line train had driven past the Van Dorn Street station in Alexandria before coming to a stop and then paused on the tracks for an additionally 30 minutes before it continued on to the Franconia Springfield station to let passengers off safely.

According to reports, transit police arrested Roberts on suspicion of driving while under the influence after an officer noted the operator’s “bloodshot eyes and slurred speech.”  Additionally, the report says the officer smelled alcohol emanating from Roberts.

Metro says Roberts has worked for the transit agency since 2017 and has been operating trains since 2019.