A Republican lawmaker running for one of Arizona's top offices was accused of chucking a half-full 'Smirnoff Spiked Sparkling Raspberry Rosé' from his car window, with police bodycam footage now released showing his arrest.
Alexander Kolodin, 40, who currently serves as a state representative and is running for secretary of state, Arizona's top election official, is in hot water after footage from a six-year-old traffic stop was recently obtained by AZFamily.
Police, who were already following his car, reported seeing him fling an 'unidentifiable shiny object' out the window before pulling him over and ticketing him for criminal littering.
'The police incorrectly mistook it as a drink container,' Kolodin said in a recent statement responding to the footage, according to the outlet.
'However after reviewing their evidence they were unable to substantiate that claim,' he added.
The footage dates to 2020, two years before Kolodin was elected to the legislature, and captures the shocking moment Scottsdale police detained him on the side of the road.
Officers initiated the traffic stop after noticing the car had no visible license plates, according to AZFamily.
While trailing behind the vehicle, officers said they saw a shiny object hurled from the window, which they believed could have been contraband or alcohol.
Arizona Republican lawmaker, 40-year-old Alexander Kolodin, was accused of chucking a half-full 'Smirnoff Spiked Sparkling Raspberry Rosé' from his car window in 2020
Kolodin, who currently serves as a state representative and is running for secretary of state, is in hot water after footage from a six-year-old traffic stop was recently obtained by AZFamily
Inside the car, police spotted an open bag on the front seat containing a firearm. Moments later, Kolodin was placed in cuffs
Under Arizona law, it is still a criminal offense for a passenger to consume alcohol inside a moving vehicle even if the driver is not the one drinking.
The footage begins as the car pulls into a parking lot, where police order Kolodin, dressed in slacks and a button-down shirt, to step out of the vehicle.
They then instructed him to walk backward toward the sound of their voices. Inside the car, police spotted an open bag on the front seat containing a firearm.
Moments later, Kolodin was placed in cuffs, while the unidentified driver who was with him was also detained at the scene.
As Kolodin sat on the curb, an officer asked whether he worked in security. He said no, before the officer asked if he knew about the gun inside the car.
'Gun?!' the lawmaker responded, appearing stunned by the question.
Police found a can of Smirnoff Spiked Sparkling Raspberry Rosé near the scene, which they determined was the object thrown from the car shortly before, according to the AZ Family.
In the footage, officers can be seen issuing Kolodin a warning before pouring the remaining contents onto the road by his feet and ultimately citing him for criminal littering.
Officers initiated the traffic stop after noticing the car had no visible license plates
Police, who were already following his car, reported seeing Kolodin fling an 'unidentifiable shiny object' out the window before pulling him over and ticketing him for criminal littering
Kolodin denied throwing a drink container from the vehicle, insisting he had only tossed ice out of the window
Kolodin denied throwing a drink container from the vehicle, insisting he had only tossed ice out of the window.
Authorities later determined that the weapons found inside the car did not belong to him, but instead belonged to the driver, who police identified as his friend.
It remains unclear what the exact outcome of the incident was, as there is no evidence that Kolodin was ever formally charged in the case.
He told AZFamily that the matter was instead resolved as a civil littering violation, rather than a criminal offense.
That same year, Kolodin was admonished by the state bar for filing lawsuits without evidence in an effort to overturn Arizona's election results, according to KJZZ Phoenix News.
Kolodin, an attorney and member of the Legislature's far-right Freedom Caucus, helped file the infamous 'Kraken lawsuit' in 2020. He also has the backing of Turning Point USA's political arm, KJZZ Phoenix reports.
Led by President Trump's former attorney Sidney Powell, the Kraken lawsuit pushed baseless claims that the 2020 election was stolen and that foreign interference had helped rig the result.
The filing alleged voting machines had been hacked, hundreds of thousands of non-citizens had cast ballots and then-Secretary of State Katie Hobbs and former Gov Doug Ducey were involved in the alleged scheme.
Authorities determined that the weapons found inside the car did not belong to Kolodin, but instead belonged to the driver, who police identified as his friend
Kolodin helped file the infamous 'Kraken lawsuit' in 2020 led by President Trump's former attorney Sidney Powell, which alleged without evidence that the presidential election was rigged
There is no evidence that Kolodin was ever formally charged in the traffic stop case. He told AZFamily that the matter was instead resolved as a civil littering violation
'Not only have Plaintiffs failed to provide the Court with factual support for their extraordinary claims, but they have wholly failed to establish that they have standing for the Court to consider them,' District Judge Diane Humetewa wrote in her ruling to throw the case out.
'Allegations that find favor in the public sphere of gossip and innuendo cannot be a substitute for earnest pleadings and procedure in federal court,' she added.
Kolodin was sanctioned by the State Bar of Arizona and ordered to pay an undisclosed fine and complete an ethics class, according to the KJZZ Phoenix.
But he moved on, winning a seat in the legislature just a few years later. Now, despite his past controversies, he is seeking to become Arizona's top election official during the 2028 presidential campaign.
He recently touted his political and legal background as making him the ideal candidate for secretary of state, calling the position 'probably the most important elections official in the country.'
'Arizona is a major swing state, the road to the White House runs directly through the Arizona Secretary of State's Office,' he said, according to KJZZ News.
'It's incumbent that we put somebody in there who's ready to hit the ground day one, not just in terms of knowledge of our election laws, but also political experience.'
As Arizona's top election official, the secretary of state oversees key parts of the state's elections, including certifying voting devices, election results, candidates and ballot measures, according to the office's website.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Kolodin for comment.
