Suspect injured after hitting other car head-on

A motorcyclist led sheriff’s deputies on a brief chase Friday afternoon, attempting twice to take out the lead pursuit vehicle, which happened to be driven by Fayette County Sheriff Randall Johnson, police said.

Johnson said he was on the crime scene of a shooting in north Fayette when he spotted the unidentified biker cutting through a yard to sneak past a detective around 2 p.m. Johnson got ahead of the biker, who was taking shortcuts, and got out of his car to order the suspect to stop.

Instead, the biker took off through another yard and Johnson had to resume the chase.

After the biker turned onto Wagon Wheel Way, he crashed head-on into an unmarked car driven by Det. Aaron Fenimore, who was cresting a hill at the time and didn’t see him coming, police said.

The suspect, whose identity was not known immediately, was thrown into the air, landing in a bed of pinestraw. Before the crash, he pulled alongside Johnson’s car twice in an attempt to wreck him, the sheriff said.

“I said, ‘Oh boy, you better quit that,’” Johnson recalled.

Two bags of marijuana were found near the bike at the crash scene, police said.

Johnson said he took off after the biker after realizing the suspect matched a description of a cyclist who got away from a deputy the other day while recklessly riding the bike with a baby on board.

“He’s been running up around here without his helmet on,” Johnson noted.

The bike, a white motocross-style vehicle, was damaged in the crash, as was Det. Fenimore’s vehicle.

The accident is being investigated by the Georgia State Patrol.
The suspect was treated by Fayette County medics and taken to the hospital for treatment. It is not clear at this writing exactly what charges will be filed.

The suspect apparently picked a bad time to run from deputies, as there were about 10 in the area working the shooting investigation and thus able to help halt the chase.