A man has been arrested after a tense standoff with deputies and a collision involving a Tesla at a Saratoga winery over the weekend. The incident unfolded at the Garrod Farms Estate Winery & Stables, where the suspect, identified as 42-year-old Beri Vikram of Menlo Park, allegedly attempted to ignite a fire before turning violent when thwarted by winery staff, the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office reported.
According to the Sheriff's Office, Vikram responded to the staff's intervention by hurling a wine bottle and hastily escaping in his Tesla, which he drove erratically into two parked vehicles, causing one to be sent tumbling over an embankment. The Sheriff's deputies arrived to find Vikram's vehicle at the bottom of the same embankment, with him inside the car refusing to comply with surrender despite multiple efforts at de-escalation by the deputies that were present, the situation ultimately requiring the use of pepperball and spray to extract him from the vehicle.
Following the extraction, Vikram was taken into custody and transported to a hospital for evaluation before being booked. He is expected to face charges of assault with a deadly weapon and resisting arrest. Meanwhile, the Sheriff's Office is continuing with its investigation into the circumstances that led up to the confrontational series of events.
