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Man charged with DUI manslaughter arrested again for buying beer while out on bond

SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — A Seminole County man accused of driving under the influence and causing a crash that killed two people was arrested again Tuesday for violating the conditions of his bond, deputies say.

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40-year-old Michael Thompson was charged with two counts of DUI manslaughter for his role in the Oct. 21 crash that killed 65-year-old Richard Mills and 61-year old Joanne Talley.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, Thompson was driving under the influence with a nine-year-old girl as passenger in his pickup truck when he rear-ended the motorcycle Mills was riding with Talley as his passenger.

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According to court documents, Thompson was released from the Seminole County Jail on Oct. 24 on a total of $51,000 bond with pretrial conditions that prohibited him from possessing or consuming alcohol.

Deputies say Thompson was caught on video violating those conditions on the same day he was released.

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According to the sheriff’s office, they were first tipped off by a relative of one of the victims in the crash who said she received anonymous tips through social media from two people who claimed they saw Thompson buying beer at a gas station on State Road 46 in Geneva.

Deputies reviewed surveillance video from the store that showed Thompson buying a six-pack of Yuengling beer just before 11 p.m. on the same day he was released, and again buying a case of Natural Light beer just after 7:30 a.m. the next morning.

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According to the sheriff’s office, Thompson also violated the conditions of his release by failing to be fitted with an alcohol monitor, as required by the judge in his case.

Thompson was returned to the Seminole County Jail Tuesday and is now being held on no bond. He’s set to appear before a judge again for an arraignment scheduled for Nov. 28.

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