Big Pine Key man arrested on DUI, child endangerment and threats, sheriff says

A 38-year-old Big Pine Key man was arrested Wednesday evening after Monroe County deputies said he was driving drunk with a child in the vehicle and the child was not properly buckled in. The sheriff’s office said the stop turned more serious when the man allegedly threatened to sexually assault a deputy’s family.

The man was identified as Jamie Allan Koval. Deputies said the case began as a DUI and child-endangerment investigation, but the threat during the encounter elevated it into a broader law-enforcement incident. In a county where one reckless driver can endanger people on a narrow highway with limited alternate routes, the combination of impaired driving and an unrestrained child put immediate attention on both roadway safety and child protection.

The sheriff’s office said the child was in the vehicle without proper restraint, a detail that sharply raised the risk inside a moving car. In Florida Keys traffic, where deputies regularly respond to crashes and impaired drivers across long stretches of Overseas Highway, a stop like this can quickly become a public-safety concern that reaches beyond the driver alone. The alleged threat against a deputy’s family also underscored how quickly a roadside arrest can spill into officer-safety issues.

The sheriff’s office did not provide the full list of charges in the information available, but the central allegations were clear: Koval was accused of driving under the influence, transporting a child who was not properly secured, and making a violent sexual threat during the arrest. For Monroe County, the case is another reminder that DUI enforcement is not only about removing impaired drivers from the road. It is also about protecting children riding in those vehicles and making clear that threats against deputies and their families will be treated as a serious escalation.