Suspect fled arrest on ATV, fought officer before being fatally shot, GBI says

The suspect allegedly drove away on a four-wheeler into the woods, leading officers on a brief chase.

The suspect allegedly drove away on a four-wheeler into the woods, leading officers on a brief chase.

A suspect who tried to flee police on an all-terrain vehicle before getting into a fight with an officer was shot and killed in Wheeler County on Thursday, the GBI said.

Around 1:15 p.m., deputies and officers with the Oconee Drug Task Force tried to serve a warrant to the person in the 100 block of Dry Branch Road in Glenwood, the GBI said in a news release.

The suspect allegedly drove away on a four-wheeler into the woods, leading officers on a brief chase. The person then got into a “physical altercation” with an officer before being shot and killed, the release said.

The officer suffered minor injuries, the release said.

No names have been released.

This is the 31st officer-involved shooting investigation the agency has opened in 2019. The last was opened after a man was involved in a shootout with an officer in DeKalb County on Saturday.

MORE: Man shot by DeKalb officers after firing at them, police say

Glenwood is about 80 miles southeast of Macon and about 100 miles west of Savannah.

Officer-involved shootings in 2019 

The shooting is the 31st of 2019, according to the GBI, which investigates most officer involved shootings. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution also tracks officer-involved shootings that don't involve the GBI, and those numbers sometimes differ from the GBI's tally.

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