Three men died in Clayton County early Monday morning after their vehicle struck another motorist and crashed into a lake. A Fayette County deputy was pursuing the vehicle in relation to a burglary at the Sprint store in Fayetteville.
Three of the men involved in the burglary died as a result of the vehicle crash and a fourth man who fled the scene is in custody.
Fayetteville Police Department spokesman Mike Whitlow said the security guard at the Sprint store on Ga. Highway 85 North saw a Chrysler approaching the store at approximately 4:20 a.m. Monday morning.
The guard saw three slender black males exit the vehicle and smash the store’s front window, said Whitlow. The guard confronted the men, who ignored him and proceeded into the store to make a quick grab of an unknown number of items, Whitlow said.
The security guard called 911 as the burglary occurred, and the thieves fled heading north on Hwy. 85 North as a Fayetteville patrol unit arrived, said Whitlow, adding that the suspects’ vehicle was traveling at a very high rate of speed northbound.
Sheriff Barry Babb said a deputy patrolling the north Fayette area heard the call and spotted the Chrysler. The deputy pursued the vehicle into Clayton County along Pointe South Parkway which turns into Flint River Road, Babb said.
The deputy in pursuit could see the Chrysler strike another vehicle at the intersection with Taylor Road, said Babb.
The deputy stopped to check the condition of the struck vehicle, believing that the Chrysler had continued on along Flint River Road. The deputy soon realized that the Chrysler had left the roadway and entered a lake.
Three of the four men in the Chrysler died as a result of the crash, while the fourth man fled the scene and is being sought by Clayton County law enforcement, said Whitlow.
The motorist struck by the fleeing vehicle was not seriously injured, Whitlow said.
