Despite changing appearance, Georgia man caught after allegedly fleeing deadly crash

Douglas Cody Gass

Credit: Tennessee Bureau of Investigation / Bay County (Fla.) Sheriff's Office

Credit: Tennessee Bureau of Investigation / Bay County (Fla.) Sheriff's Office

Douglas Cody Gass

A northwest Georgia man who was recently added to Tennessee’s “Most Wanted” list was captured in Florida on Friday, authorities said.

Douglas Cody Gass, 23, of Chickamauga, was wanted by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) and Chattanooga Police Department after allegedly fleeing a deadly wreck, the TBI said in a Facebook post.

Gass is accused of leaving 19-year-old Kobe Burchfield to die Oct. 8 after causing a fiery wreck in Fort Oglethorpe, which is near the Tennessee border, according to multiple media reports. He allegedly caused the one-vehicle crash while fleeing from Fort Oglethorpe police after they tried to pull him over for reckless driving, Chattanooga-based news station WTVC reported.

Gass is accused of running away while Burchfield remained trapped in the burning vehicle by his seat belt, the news station reported.

Gass was wanted on charges of vehicular homicide, reckless aggravated assault, felony evading police, leaving the scene of an accident involving death and reckless endangerment, the TBI said.

He was found by authorities in Panama City, Fla., after the Bay County Sheriff’s Office received a tip that Gass was living in the 200 block of Corto Place, the sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post.

He was arrested while hiding under a bed in the house. In his booking photo, it appears he cut off the majority of his hair and dyed it a light blond.

He remains in the Bay County jail awaiting extradition to Tennessee.

The Hamilton County (Tenn.) Sheriff’s Office said that more than a dozen law enforcement agencies from Florida, Georgia and Tennessee assisted in the investigation and manhunt.

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