Justin Timberlake DWI arrest: Owner of hotel – where star drank ‘one martini’ before getting pulled over – breaks silence… and reveals how singer conducted himself during stay | HO

The owner of the Sag Harbor hotel where Justin Timberlake drank before getting busted for driving while intoxicated on Monday night has lauded the singer as a ‘great guy’.

The Sexy Back singer – whose lawyer broke his silence on the case – was spotted veering across a road and running a stop sign before he was arrested.

He claimed he had drank only ‘one martini’ while at the The American Hotel and refused a breathalyzer test.

Ted Conklin, owner of The American Hotel, told TMZ Justin was a model customer while there, adding the singer was ‘a great guest and a nice guy.’

This comes as it was revealed the police officer who arrested Timberlake for driving while intoxicated was too young to recognize the shamed music megastar.

The owner of the Sag Harbor hotel where Justin Timberlake drank before getting busted for driving while intoxicated on Monday night has lauded the singer as a ‘great guy’

Ted Conklin, owner of The American Hotel, told TMZ Justin was a model customer while there, adding the singer was ‘a great guest and a nice guy.

Officers had to intervene after the ‘Sexy Back’ singer was spotted veering across a road in Sag Harbor, New York, and running a stop sign on Monday night.

Sources told Page Six that the officer who pulled him over ‘was so young that he didn’t even know’ who the pop star was.

The insider told the outlet that the officer ‘didn’t recognize him or his name’ after he was pulled over.

After the 43-year-old failed a field sobriety test, officers arrested the father-of-two and took him to a local police station where he refused a breathalyzer.

The outlet also reported that Timberlake had said under his breath, ‘This is going to ruin the tour,’ to which the officer replied: ‘What tour?’ Justin said: ‘The world tour.’

The singer, who rose to fame as the lead member of 90s boyband NSYNC before launching a successful solo career in the noughties, is currently on a world tour in promotion of his new album.

He was driving a 2025 BMW in Sag Harbor around 12:30 a.m. when the officer stopped him and determined he was intoxicated.

A report seen by DailyMail.com described Timberlake as having ‘bloodshot and glassy’ eyes, smelling strongly of alcohol, having slowed speech and unable to maintain his attention.

Justin, who was pictured in handcuffs at one point, was released without bond later Tuesday morning after being arraigned in Sag Harbor

Sobriety tests include being asked to walk heel-to-toe in a straight line and turn and retrace the steps or stand on one leg.

Justin told the officer he had ‘one martini and was following some friends home’.

After being arrested and taken to a police station in nearby East Hampton, he refused a breath test.

On Tuesday morning, he was seen being led across the bridge from Sag Harbor police headquarters to the villages Justice Court on Tuesday by police officers in exclusive pictures obtained by DailyMail.com.

Timberlake appeared shell-shocked as he looked straight ahead as he was led out by officers.

After a brief arraignment where he was banned from driving for a year in New York, he was released without bail, emerging from court wearing a baseball cap.

Justin was arraigned on one count of DWI, as well as running a stop sign and failing to stay in his lane. He is next in court on July 26.

The 43-year-old star was pictured looking exhausted after his arraignment on Tuesday morning in Sag Harbor

Justin’s wife Jessica, meanwhile, was spotted out in public on Tuesday for the first time after her husband’s arrest. The actress, 42, filmed scenes for her Amazon series The Better Sister

A report described Timberlake, seen here in Miami on Saturday, as having ‘bloodshot and glassy’ eyes, smelling strongly of alcohol, having slowed speech and was unable to maintain his attention

According to reports, the officer had ‘no idea’ who Justin was. The singer was huge in the 90s as the lead vocalist for boyband NSYNC (pictured far right in 1997)

Justin had been drinking with friends at The American Hotel bar in the Hamptons town.

One witness claimed to The New York Post the singer had been ‘wasted’ before his DWI bust and was even seen drinking someone else’s drink from another table.

The unknown person told the outlet: ‘He was wasted. At one point, just before closing, somebody got up to go to the bathroom and left his drink on the table.

‘When [the man] came back, [Timberlake] was drinking his drink. The guy goes, “Justin, that’s my drink!.”‘

After reports emerged Justin had told officers at the scene he had ‘just one martini’ before ‘following his friends home,’ it opened the floodgates for dozens of memes to be created.

Fans made jokes about the size of the martini glass and his famous dance moves came back to haunt him after he failed the field sobriety test.

One wrote: ‘Why does Justin Timberlake look so hungover if he only had ONE martini? The martini…,’ alongside a gif of a giant martini glass being carried over to a table.

Timberlake had been drinking at The American Hotel in Sag Harbor when he emerged after one too many

Justin shot to fame during the noughties as he launched his solo career and spawned the hit Cry Me A River about his relationship with Britney Spears

Sag Harbor is nestled amid the Hamptons, around 100 miles east of New York City

Others uploaded memes of bartenders generously pouring alcohol into a cocktail glass.

Justin’s wife Jessica, meanwhile, was spotted out in public on Tuesday for the first time after her husband’s arrest.

The actress, 42, was pictured as she filmed scenes for her upcoming Amazon series The Better Sister in New York City.

Jessica looked tense and muted while standing around on set between takes.

She stars in the series with Elizabeth Banks, and the series is based on the 2019 novel by Alafair Burke.

They play two sisters who are brought together by tragedy after one of their husbands is murdered.

The set wasn’t far from Sag Harbor, the village in the Hamptons.

The Hamptons have long been a hot spot for the rich and famous, and various stars and otherwise prominent people have had brushes with the law there.

Justin had been drinking more to ‘escape’ the backlash over Britney Spears‘ bombshell memoir and the mounting pressures of staying in the charts, according to reports, with insiders claiming he has arrived at tour rehearsals reeking of booze on more than one occasion.

Insiders claim the incident should serve as a ‘wake-up call’ for the singer who used alcohol to cope with the explosive allegations leveled against him by Britney, 42, including that he urged her to have an abortion in the early 2000s.

On top of this, sources allege he has been crumbling under the increasing pressure to compete with popular artists like Harry Styles – and has struggled with the lackluster performance of his latest album, Everything I Thought It Was, which failed to top the charts on its release in March.

‘Justin has been stressed over the Britney drama that happened at the end of last year and some of us noticed that he was drinking more,’ a source told DailyMail.com exclusively.

‘He isn’t an alcoholic by any stretch, but he was advised to reel the drinking in so he could have a clear head when dealing with any public controversy because he had been accused of handling the Britney and Janet Jackson backlash poorly.’

The pop star is still reportedly planning to do his two upcoming shows in Chicago later this week for his The Forget Tomorrow World Tour (pictured in April)

Justin had been drinking more to ‘escape’ the backlash over Britney Spears ‘ bombshell memoir and the mounting pressures of staying in the charts, according to reports  (2001)

The source continued: ‘The guys who were there last night didn’t want him to drive because they had been drinking, but they were ignored.

‘He is being cooperative now and is working with his lawyer Edward [Burke, Jr.] to help him work his way through it. His friends have wanted him to drop the booze for some time, so this is somewhat of a wake-up call.

‘The pressure of having to compete with artists like Harry Styles and Drake is getting to him and his numbers [album sales] being lower is definitely bothering him.

‘We’ve all felt this for a while, and it has affected his writing process on his last few records.’

A second insider echoed the concerns, claiming Justin’s latest alcohol-fueled incident stems from a need to ‘escape’ following poor album sales.

‘It’s hard to say why anyone drinks but if it has to do with where he is at in his life right now, it makes sense to say he needs an escape,’ they said.

‘This will likely be his last successful tour and he is aware of this. He has a wife and two young kids at home.

‘He has not been super happy about his album sales but no one at the label really has. Everyone was expecting so much better.’

A third source claimed his drinking habits are well known among those closest to him.

‘It is no secret that Justin drinks, and the dancers know this better than anyone,’ they said. ‘He has turned up to rehearse smelling like alcohol on several occasions.’

Britney Spears and boyfriend Justin Timberlake arrive at the premiere of her movie “Crossroads” at the Mann Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, Ca., Feb. 11, 2002

Timberlake attends the 2022 Children’s Hospital Los Angeles Gala at the Barker Hangar on October 08, 2022 in Santa Monica, California

The source said he often ‘celebrates a good show by getting drunk’ but can also become ‘flirty’ – with his wife, Jessica, joining nights out to ‘babysit’ him.

‘When he drinks, he gets super flirty, and Jessica does have to babysit him,’ they continued. ‘She has gone out with the crew several times.

‘He has blamed alcohol for past behavior, including when he got caught “holding hands” with Alisha [Wainwright].’

Back in 2019 Justin claimed he had drank ‘way too much’ after pictures emerged of him holding hands with his Palmer costar Alisha at a New Orleans bar.

He later issued a public apology in which he said he ‘displayed a strong lapse in judgement,’ before insisting ‘nothing happened between me and my costar.’

The singer is still reportedly planning to do his two upcoming shows for his The Forget Tomorrow World Tour in Chicago later this week.

It will be followed by back-to-back nights at Madison Square Garden in New York City next week.