Atlanta police are searching for a large group of dirt bikers and ATV riders — some armed with handguns — who reportedly surrounded two officers recently when they tried dispersing a crowd.
Police were called to the 600 block of Travis Street on Jan. 23 after receiving calls about the group driving recklessly through northwest Atlanta. Dispatchers told the officers some of the riders were spotted waving guns in the air, according to an incident report.
“Upon arrival, officers observed several armed males riding recklessly on dirt bikes and obstructing traffic,” Atlanta police spokesman Officer Anthony Grant said. “Officers activated their patrol vehicle’s emergency lights in an attempt to clear the dirt bikes from the roadway, but several riders began surrounding the patrol vehicle to block officers from movement.”
Fearing for their safety, the two officers called for backup and managed to get out of the crowd, according to the incident report.
They followed the group south on Northside Drive and spotted them at a gas station at the intersection of Joseph E. Boone Boulevard. The riders, who investigators believe are members of the group “ATL Bike Life,” blocked traffic as they performed wheelies and other stunts, according to the report.
Capt. Antonio Clay said there were between 150 and 200 riders that afternoon, a sight that’s become increasingly common on Atlanta’s streets, especially on weekends.
“They were blocking intersections and lanes and some of them actually rode up on sidewalks,” said Clay, who is assistant commander of Atlanta’s Zone 5 precinct.
A large group rode through Atlantic Station the prior weekend, and police are concerned the riders have become increasingly brazen.
“It’s resurfaced over the last four weeks but this has been an ongoing problem for the last five or six years,” Clay said. “It’s starting to pick back up, so we’re trying to get in front of this before there’s a thousand of them going down Peachtree.”
The two officers followed the group downtown to Marietta Street, but kept their distance. One of the riders, a man on a stolen red and black Honda, circled back and rode toward the patrol car in an attempt to hem in the officers a second time, authorities said. Instead, the rider struck the front of the cruiser and dropped the motorcycle before running away.
The remaining riders then took off at a high rate of speed.
Investigators released photos of 15 people they said took part in the incident, but surveillance footage from a police camera at the intersection of Marietta and Baker streets shows there were several dozen more riders involved.
Credit: Atlanta Police Department
Credit: Atlanta Police Department
One dirt bike rider was arrested about an hour and a half later after running from officers in Midtown and hiding on Georgia Tech’s campus, according to the police report.
Two officers spotted Marvin McClelland of Lithonia riding on North Avenue without headlights, turn signals or a license plate, authorities said. He rode onto a sidewalk and abandoned the motorcycle near a dormitory entrance, but was eventually discovered hiding in some bushes on campus, police said. Nearby, officers found a helmet with a GoPro attached to it. A black handgun was also found inside a bag that was left with the dirt bike, authorities said.
McClelland was charged with obstruction, reckless driving, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and several traffic offenses. He bonded out of jail three days later, online records show.
The Atlanta Police Department recently reinstated its chase policy after suspending it for nearly a year, but officers are only allowed to chase violent offenders and they must get supervisory approval first.
Clay said it’s simply too dangerous for officers to chase dirt bikes and ATVs, but hopes a combination of cellphone video, surveillance footage and alert residents will lead to arrests.
“We’re not going to chase ATVs on city streets. We’re not going to do that,” he said. “We’re asking the community for help identifying these unknown individuals because we want to make it uncomfortable for ATVs and dirt bikes to come here.”
In late 2019, a man riding an ATV was killed after colliding with an Atlanta fire truck on Sylvan Road. And last May, APD veteran Officer Max Brewer had both legs shattered when he was struck by an ATV during the second night of protests downtown. He spent weeks in the hospital before finally going home in July.
Anyone who recognizes the men involved in last month’s incident is asked to call investigators at 404-658-7830.
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