Traffic stop turns into chase

Published 5:12 pm Thursday, October 5, 2023

VALDOSTA — A traffic stop Wednesday turned into a chase and criminal charges.

A car was stopped for illegal window tint, and the driver provided his driver’s license, the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office said.

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The driver was asked to get out of the vehicle; instead, he fled in the car south on Ashley Street, then west on East Mary Street, reaching speeds above 100 mph, the statement said.

The driver wound up in a single-car accident at the corner of Oak Street and West Mary Street and fled on foot, the sheriff’s office said. A county K9 unit apprehended him shortly afterward.

The driver now faces charges of leaving the scene of a crash, obstruction, failure to use due care, fleeing to elude and driving while under the influence, in addition to an outstanding arrest warrant, the statement said.