A Cumming woman died after she was ejected from a car and a Sugar Hill woman was severely injured Saturday during a two-county police chase that ended in Gwinnett.
The driver of a stolen car, Alston Spence, 28, of Cumming, tried to leave the deadly crash scene but was captured moments later, Forsyth County Deputy Doug Rainwater said in a news release.
Spence faces vehicular homicide charges in the crash that killed 38-year-old Andrea Allison and injured 46-year-old Jessica Rantamaki.
The chase began in Forsyth County when police got a call around 10 p.m. about a stolen car at a Shell gas station on Buford Highway near Samples Road, Rainwater said. The victims had just gotten out of their car to go into the store when Spence and Allison slipped in and drove off, he said.
Authorities chased the duo down Buford Dam Road and into Gwinnett County, where they crashed head-on into a car while turning a curve on Sycamore Road.
Allison died at the scene.
Rantamaki was one of the four occupants of the other car, along with her husband and two friends. The New York native underwent major surgery Monday, according to her sister, Nicolle Morea, and remained in ICU on Thursday.
“She’s going to have an extra long recovery,” Morea said from Gainesville, Fla.
Morea said her brother-in-law suffered lacerations in the crash and another passenger sustained a broken leg.
Spence also faces numerous other charges, including theft and fleeing in Forsyth and Gwinnett counties. He also faces reckless driving and other traffic offenses in Gwinnett.
Spence was wanted in Hall County for a probation violation. He remained in the Gwinnett County jail Monday.
According to Channel 2 Action News, the deputy who chased Spence is on paid administrative leave.
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