Stolen motorcycle flees from GSP at 170 mph

TOCCOA - The driver of a stolen motorcycle led the Georgia State Patrol on a high-speed chase into South Carolina Tuesday morning.

According to Trooper 1st Class Casey Coffee, Trooper 1st Class Oneal Sadler checked the Suzuki motorcycle running 79 in a 45-mph zone.

When Sadler attempted to stop the vehicle on U.S. Highway 29 in Hart County before 9 a.m., it fled across the bridge at Hartwell Dam and into Anderson County, S.C.

At one point during the chase, Sadler recorded the motorcycle running 170 mph, Coffee said, noting the bike had been stolen out of Anderson, S.C.

Both the fleeing motorcyclist and Sadler wrecked while attempting a right turn, said Sgt. 1st Class Al Whitworth, commander of Post 7 in Toccoa.

The motorcyclist laid the bike down, then jumped up and ran away, Whitworth said. The motorcyclist remained at large at last report Tuesday.

"We don't suspect that he's injured," Whitworth said.

Sadler's patrol car "crashed through a chain-link fence when he made the right turn," Whitworth said.

While the patrol car was damaged and will require repairs, Whitworth said it is drivable.

The motorcyclist faces both misdemeanor and felony warrants in Georgia, and will face charges in South Carolina.

Whitworth said there was no contact between the motorcycle and the patrol car at any time during the chase.

Asked whether the motorcycle was modified, Whitworth said, "I'm not sure, but based on the speed that thing was able to move, I would say it almost had to be."

The wrecks were investigated by South Carolina law enforcement personnel.

Sadler will face a standard post-pursuit review, but remains on duty, Whitworth said.

Because the pursuit crossed into South Carolina, it created radio issues for Sadler, who was communicating with Troop B Communications in Gainesville.

"That is definitely a concern for us because of officer safety," Whitworth said.

One thing that may improve communications in that area is that when the new GSP Post 52 is constructed in Hart County, some communications towers will be relocated to help with communications in Hart and Elbert counties, Whitworth said.