Peanut butter and jelly blamed for one-car Illinois crash

A man was so engrossed in eating his peanut butter and jelly sandwich that he drove his car into a utility pole, Park Ridge police say.

The 25-year-old Arlington Heights man was driving on Northwest Highway just before 2 p.m., April 7, when his 2011 Ford E350 van drove off the road and struck a ComEd utility pole, a police report indicated.

The man reportedly told police that he was eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich while driving and when he hit a bump in the road and lost control of both the steering wheel and his sandwich, eventually crashing into the pole.

The accident report noted that when an officer arrived on the scene, the driver’s face “was covered with peanut butter.”

No injuries were reported, though the driver was ticketed for driving too fast for conditions and reckless driving, police said.