Gowanda Police Department

GOWANDA — Andrew C. Knoph, 31, of South Dayton was charged with allegedly failing to keep right, failing to use designated lane, two counts of leaving the scene of a property damage accident and felony while under the influence of drugs.

Patrol responded to the report of Knoph operating a vehicle that had struck another vehicle in a driveway on Beech Street and then left the scene. Knoph reportedly was then doing doughnuts with the vehicle on Palmer Street. This vehicle reportedly had a flat tire and a damaged tire rim. While looking for Knoph, patrol discovered that he had operated on the wrong side of the road, had struck and damaged a guardrail near the underpass on Jamestown Street and that he had left the scene of the accident also.

Patrol located Knoph and his damaged vehicle on Jamestown Street. Knoph exhibited signs of impairment and he failed several sobriety checks. It appeared that Knoph’s impairment was caused by his drug usage rather than by alcohol. A drug recognition expert from the Cattaraugus County Sheriff’s Department assisted and conducted testing on Knoph for drug use. These tests resulted in a positive conclusion for drug use. Knoph refused to submit a urine sample for further drug determination. This felony charge was lodged due to Knophs prior conviction of driving while intoxicated in March of 2018. He was then released on an appearance ticket to appear in the town of Persia Court. The Erie County Sheriff’s Department also assisted with this arrest.