Justin Timberlake ‘wasn’t recognised’ by arresting officer

Justin Timberlake “wasn’t recognised” by the police officer who arrested him on suspicion of driving while intoxicated.

The 43-year-old pop star’s car was pulled over in Sag Harbor, New York in the early hours of Tuesday (18.06.24) and Timberlake was detained after taking a field sobriety test and allegedly refusing a breathalyser – and a new report suggests the young cop who carried out the traffic stop had no idea he was dealing with a famous singer.

A source told New York Post column PageSix: “[The cop] was so young that he didn’t even know [who Timberlake was]. He didn’t recognise him or his name.”

A second insider told the publication: “Justin said under his breath, ‘This is going to ruin the tour.’ The cop replied, ‘What tour?’ Justin said, ‘The world tour’.”

According to documents seen by PEOPLE, it’s claimed the pop star drove through a stop sign, and failed to “keep on the right side of the roadway”.

According to the paperwork, the arresting officer observed Timberlake’s eyes were “bloodshot and glassy, a strong odour of an alcoholic beverage was emanating from his breath, he was unable to divide attention, he had slowed speech, he was unsteady afoot, and he performed poorly on all standardised field sobriety tests”.

After being taken to a police station, the report was read aloud to Timberlake. He responded: “No, I’m not doing a chemical test.” After being read the report two more times, he replied: “I refuse [to take a chemical test].”

The pop star has been charged with one count of driving while intoxicated. He’s also received two citations – one for running a stop sign and another for failure to keep in lane.

Timberlake was held overnight for arraignment and later released on his own recognisance while his driving license will be suspended in the state of New York.

The ‘SexyBack’ singer is due back in court on July 26.