Man sets truck on fire then tries to run over deputy chasing him, Georgia cops say
One man was arrested after authorities said he committed a series of crimes before crashing in a school parking lot, news outlets report.
It started the morning of Saturday, Oct. 7, in Cleveland, Georgia, when the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office said the 53-year-old man broke into a shop and stole several items, according to WAGA. The sheriff’s office said the man loaded up the stolen items into a box truck.
Officials told WSB-TV that before the man left, he used explosives to set a pickup truck on fire at the shop. Deputies responded to the fire and secured the area, according to WSB-TV.
Around 11 a.m., White County sheriff’s deputies spotted the box truck on a highway with the back door open and furniture falling out, according to a news release from the White County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies tried to stop the truck, but it fled, the sheriff’s office said.
Officials say while deputies were chasing the man, he rammed into a cruiser and at one point tried to run over a deputy.
“Deputies fired their weapons at the offender, hitting him in the arm, but the offender continued to flee,” the White County Sheriff’s Office said.
Eventually, deputies were able to “wreck” the truck in an elementary school parking lot.
The driver, identified as Alan Paul Heinze, was taken to a hospital and faces several charges, including aggravated assault on a peace officer, officials said.
Officials say no deputies were injured.
Georgia State Patrol and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation are investigating, officials said.
Cleveland, Georgia, is about 80 miles northeast of Atlanta.
This story was originally published October 8, 2023 at 1:18 PM with the headline "Man sets truck on fire then tries to run over deputy chasing him, Georgia cops say."
