WHITE COUNTY, Ga. — State law enforcement is investigating after White County deputies shot a man in the arm after he tried to run over them with a moving truck, the sheriff's office said.
It all unfolded around 11 a.m. Saturday deputies saw an open Penske box truck traveling on Hwy 115 East heading westbound. Household items such as furniture were falling out of the truck, deputies said.
As authorities tried to stop the driver, the man kept going, even ramming into a deputy patrol vehicle, according to the White County Sheriff's Office.
Despite attempts at PIT maneuvers, the man continued to evade law enforcement, authorities said, even trying to run over a deputy on Helen Highway during the pursuit. This led deputies to fire at the driver, striking him in the arm - but he continued to drive away, the sheriff's office said.
Cleveland Police Department officers became involved in the pursuit and were able "to wreck the offender in the parking lot of Jack P. Nix Elementary School," a statement from the sheriff's office read.
The story continues after the gallery.
White County deputy shoots at man trying to flee authorities: sheriff's office
The driver, later identified as a 53-year-old man from Cleveland, Georgia, was taken into custody. He was then taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center to be treated for his injuries. No law enforcement was hurt, the sheriff's office said.
However, later Saturday evening, the Habersham County Sheriff's Office announced it would be filing its own charges against the driver, claiming he broke onto a property on Sutton Road, took items and loaded them into the truck he used during the chase.
In addition, the Habersham County Sheriff's Office says the suspect set a pickup truck on fire at the Sutton Road location before taking off. This all happened earlier in the day before the chase with police, the sheriff's office explained.
Sutton Road Truck Fire
The man is accused of aggravated assault on a peace officer. In Habersham County, he's being charged with an unsecured load, burglary, and second-degree arson. The Georgia State Patrol has been asked to investigate the crash; the Georgia Bureau of Investigation has been asked to look into the shooting involving the deputies.