A man accused of robbing a woman at knifepoint and stealing her car in Decatur on Thursday afternoon was arrested less than 24 hours later after crossing state lines, authorities said.
Deonta Taylor, 24, of Decatur, was taken into custody in Alabama on Friday after he and a passenger led authorities on a chase in the stolen vehicle, which the suspect later crashed, according to police.
Decatur police responded at around 4:45 p.m. Thursday to the robbery in the 200 block of West Ponce de Leon Avenue near DeVry University. The woman, who was not publicly identified, was walking to her vehicle in a parking garage when the suspect approached, pulled out a knife and demanded her car keys, police said. Authorities said the woman dropped the keys and ran away, so the man grabbed them and left in her Hyundai Tucson.
Investigators then obtained an arrest warrant for armed robbery. Taylor was found in Roanoke, Alabama, on Friday.
At around 11:30 a.m., Roanoke police patrol units were told that a blue Tucson, which had an active tracker, was involved in an armed robbery in Georgia. Two minutes later, police said the tracker pinged at a Circle K gas station. An officer then noticed the car run a red light at the nearby intersection of U.S. 431 at Ala. 22 at a “high rate of speed.”
The vehicle fled from the officer and traveled south on Lafayette Highway, where it passed traffic and entered a Budget Inn parking lot, police said. It then continued south on U.S. 431 while allegedly going more than 100 mph. Soon after, the vehicle left the road at the intersection of Chambers County Road 267 and crashed into several trees.
Taylor got out of the vehicle carrying a bag and a handgun and ran into the woods, police said. The passenger, a woman, was detained at the scene and released without charges, according to authorities.
About an hour later, Chambers County deputies located Taylor and took him into custody roughly a mile east of the crash. He was brought back to the vehicle and identified as the driver. The Hyundai was the only vehicle damaged during the chase, police said.
Taylor was taken to Randolph County Jail and faces charges of attempting to elude a police officer and receiving a stolen vehicle, according to jail records. He will be brought back to DeKalb County, Decatur police said.
Decatur police had posted a picture of the suspect on social media Friday morning. He was seen wearing a black jacket, ripped jeans and a cap with an Atlanta Falcons logo.
An investigation is ongoing, police said.
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