“Sopranos” Actor Arrested for DUI

The DUI charge claims another Hollywood victim. Early Friday morning Tampa police arrested 51-year-old Joseph Gannascoli, best known for playing Vito Spatafore on the HBO show "The Sopranos", according to jail records.

The actor has posted $500 bond and is expected to be released From Hillsborough County Jail later today. 

Gannascoli had made a special appearance Thursday evening at SoHo Cigar in Tampa. The actor was signing autographs for patrons that bought five or more Ciguine cigars.

According to Tampa Bay Online, an officer in Hyde Park spotted a 2010 Dodge that made a wide right turn from Howard Avenue onto Kennedy Boulevard at about 2:40 a.m., police said. The officer then claimed the vehicle drifted in its lane and crossed the lane marker.

After stopping the car, driven by Gannascoli, the officer said he could smell alcohol on the actor's breath and believed the East Rockaway resident had slurred speech and bloodshot, watery eyes, police said. He failed field sobriety tests.

Breath tests showed his blood-alcohol level at 0.111. Florida law presumes impairment with a blood-alcohol level of 0.08.

A Nassau County native, Gannascoli played a mobster who was killed because he was gay.
 

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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