A Gainesville man remains in the hospital after allegedly leading deputies on a high-speed chase through Forsyth County that ended when he flipped and wrecked his SUV.
Authorities received a call about a suspected drunken driver on Ga. 369 near Hammonds Crossing just before 11 p.m. Saturday. After spotting the driver and witnessing him fail to maintain his lane twice, a deputy tried to stop the SUV, the sheriff’s office said Friday in a Facebook post. That’s when the driver, later identified as 32-year-old Santiago Ortiz-Catalan, made a U-turn and took off at a high rate of speed, according to authorities.
Dashboard footage appears to show the chase continue for several minutes with Ortiz-Catalan weaving around cars in the opposite lane and running red lights. It ended when the SUV hit an embankment and flipped.
Body camera footage shows Ortiz-Catalan escape from the car on foot, but he was later captured in some nearby woods with the help of a sheriff’s office K-9, officials said.
He faces a host of charges, including possessing a firearm during the commission of a felony, fleeing and eluding, obstruction, drug possession, failure to maintain lane, driving under the influence, altering the serial number of a firearm, theft by receiving stolen property, reckless driving and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Ortiz-Catalan was also wanted on several warrants, deputies said.
He will be booked into the Forsyth County Jail after he is released from the hospital.
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