A Dunwoody police officer and the man he was chasing were injured early Friday morning after the two fell into a creek in the middle of a wooded area.
The specific injuries of the officer and the suspect, 34-year-old Derek Henrique Telles, were not disclosed. Both were incapacitated by the fall and were taken to a hospital Friday, according to an incident report obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Telles was suspected of breaking into vehicles at the Dunwoody Glen apartments on Peachtree Industrial Boulevard, according to the report. A resident called 911 to report a man walking around the parking lot and looking inside parked vehicles with a flashlight.
When police arrived at the complex around 4 a.m., they found a U-Haul truck and a brown GMC van with its rear doors open. It was believed that someone was actively rummaging through the GMC when the officers arrived, one officer said in the report.
That was when Telles, who was standing behind the rental truck, took off in a sprint toward a wooded area, and police yelled at him to stop running, the report states. Two officers then followed behind Telles into the woods, which backed up to nearby Nancy Creek.
The pursuit continued until Telles and one officer, identified in the report at Officer Reynolds, fell into the creek and “sustained various incapacitating injuries.” The other officer stayed on the bank, held Telles at the end of his Taser and handcuffed him until rescue arrived, according to the report.
Both were eventually fished from the creek and taken to Grady Memorial Hospital.
Returning to the apartment complex, officers said they found several power tools inside the cab of the U-Haul. Police also found three smartphones, a ledger, two wallets and a “drug related object” in the truck, all of which were removed, according to the report.
One of the objects found in the truck was a Magnum Leaf Blower. Police were able to identify that the leaf blower was taken from the GMC after they contacted the vehicle’s registered owner.
Telles is facing a misdemeanor charge of obstruction and two felony charges, attempt to commit burglary and entering auto. More charges are pending related to the items found in the truck cab, according to the report.
As of Monday, Telles has not been booked into the DeKalb County Jail. A DeKalb County sheriff’s spokeswoman would not confirm where he was being held.
— Please return to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for updates.
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