DUI suspect accused of slamming into Pleasant Hill 'Sweet Tomatoes'

PLEASANT HILL, Calif. (KTVU) - A driver was arrested on charges of crashing into a restaurant early Friday morning in Pleasant Hill, authorities said.

The truck slammed into the "Sweet Tomatoes" on Crescent Drive in downtown Pleasant Hill, just after 2 a.m. Sgt. Matt Kristic said that when police arrived after getting a call from security guards, the truck was halfway in the building and the driver "was asleep at the time." 

Based on what the security guard told police, the driver - identified as Alejandro Mendez-Valencia - had been parked there for at least an hour, and he may have tried to put the truck in reverse, Kristic said, and "ran straight into the business." 

The truck took down two large glass windows right in front of the cash registers, and scattered broken glass along the sidewalk. None of the structural beams weren't damaged, police said. And no one was injured.

Mendez-Valencia was arrested on suspicion of DUI, and has been identified as a 23-year-old from Fresno.

"He just shouldn't have been behind the wheel," Kristic said. "Just a good reminder to everybody if you've had too much to drink, call for a ride." 

There is no word on whether the restaurant will be able to open sometime Friday.