EXCLUSIVESag Harbor cop who didn't recognize Justin Timberlake during DWI arrest is unmasked as rookie Michael Arkinson... and he's been infuriating the Hamptons elite for months
The Gen Z cop who didn't recognize Justin Timberlake when he pulled him over for allegedly drunk driving in Sag Harbor is a rookie officer who's already made a name for himself in the ritzy Hamptons town despite joining the force just three months ago.
Officer Michael Arkinson, who turns 24 this month, pulled Timberlake over on Monday night after allegedly watching him blow a stop sign and swerve in the right lane.
In his reports, he talked about Timberlake being unsteady on his feet and refusing a breath test.
Hilariously, he's so young he didn't seem to know who Timberlake was.
Arkinson wasn't even born when Timberlake became a member of the boy band N'Sync in 1995.
By 2001, Timberlake was a rising star due to the group's signature hit, 'Bye Bye Bye'; Arkinson, who is the son of an electrician and school teacher, was just one.
But in the three short months he's been on the force, he's already become known for his pull-over attempts, earning himself a nickname of 'the Sag Harbor Nazi' and a 'little red-headed dips**t' among the Hamptons' wealthy residents.
Michael Arkinson, who turns 24 this month, of the Sag Harbor Village Police Department didn't know who the 43-year-old 'Sexy Back' singer was when he pulled him over early Tuesday morning
Timberlake was booked into Sag Harbor Police Station
Spencer, a writer from Shelter Island, is one driver who claims he's had an unpleasant encounter with Arkinson. He was recently trying to find a parking spot before meeting a friend for dinner in Sag Harbor when he performed a quick U-turn.
Arkinson pounced when he spotted him make the turn.
'I was surprised he pulled me over,' he said.
'It was off season, and no one was around. It was a d**khead move. I felt like he pulled me over just for the sake of doing it.'
Luckily, he said he was given a 'warning.'
But, the second time Arkinson wasn't so nice.
Spencer was driving near the Sag Harbor School when Arkinson pulled him over for talking on his cell phone.
'I explained to him that I was on speaker and I was just holding my phone, but he told me I should have been using a Bluetooth,' he said.
He added: 'I thought he would give me a break, and I was driving less than 25mph trying to get to the Y in East Hampton.'
Instead Arkinson hit him with a $145 ticket that he hasn't paid.
'I only had less than 30 minutes to swim. It really interrupted my workout, and lunch plans' he said.
'I think Justin Timberlake was a victim of over-aggressive Sag Harbor police.'
Another long-term Sag Harbor resident remembers when Atkinson was a traffic control officer and a 'brownie', or traffic control office, before he moved up into the ranks in the force.
Justin Timberlake 's lawyer has broken his silence over the star's DWI arrest and suggested there is more to the story
Pictured: Arkinson as a child with his father
The local said while he'd has never received a ticket from Atkinson, everyone knew where the cops would park on Main Street: Outside the windmill and Murf's Backstreet Tavern, and by the local school.
And he wasn't surprised 24-year-old Atkinson had no idea who Timberlake was: 'If that is not your taste in music, how would you know?'
He added that Arkinson's showdown with the singer is bound to be released: 'If anything came out, it's all on bodycam.'
According to Arkinson's report, Timberlake refused a breathalyzer three different times
The 6-foot-4 Arkinson played lacrosse at South Hampton High School, before earning a spot on the Roger Williams University team.
He started as a part-time traffic control officer when he was still in high school going back as far as 2017 earning less than $15 an hour.
A yearly average salary for Sag Harbor PD officers is about $70,000.
In 2022, he graduated the police academy, and in March 2024 was promoted to full-time Sag Harbor officer.
Arkinson, who lives in South Hampton, approximately 25 minutes from the tiny town of Sag Harbor, didn't respond to the DailyMail.com's several requests for comment.
Arkinson's parents also chose not to comment about their son's big arrest.
However they did call the police, who warned media to stay away from their home.
When the megastar was pulled over, Arkinson, noted on the complaint report that Timberlake performed 'poorly on all standardized field sobriety tests.'
The rookie cop noted that the star had reeked from alcohol, was unsteady on his feet and that his speech was slow as he tried to retrieve his vehicle registration.
Timberlake said he 'only had one martini,' and that he 'followed his friends home'.
He also refused to take a breathalyzer test. Arkinson read an alcohol influence report to Timberlake at 12:52 am, who responded, 'No, I'm not doing a chemical test,' which Arkinson noted on the complaint.
When offered again at 1:07 am, Timberlake again responded: 'I refuse.'
A third time at 1:22 am, Timberlake repeated: 'I refuse.'
He was then placed under arrest and transported to the Sag Harbor Police Department Headquarters by another Sag Harbor officer Otis Cantrell and fronted the Sag Harbor Village Court on Tuesday pleading not guilty.
His lawyer, Eddie Burke, bailed him out. By Wednesday, his attorney told DailyMail.com that he had left the Hamptons to prepare for his Chicago concert on Friday night.
Timberlake's case is back in court on July 26, but the star doesn't need to be present.
In January 2000, NSYNC released 'Bye Bye Bye,' which shot into the top 5 of the Hot 100 and spent five weeks atop the Hot 100 Airplay chart. Arkinson was later born in June 2000
