A man wanted in three counties found himself behind bars following a dramatic chase through Habersham and Stephens counties Thursday night, March 14, sheriff’s office officials say.
Dakota Meister, 29, of Dawsonville, was arrested following a chase which ran for miles through Habersham and Stephens counties.
According to the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office, the pursuit began when a county deputy attempted to pull over a Yamaha YZF600 motorcycle at 10:17 p.m. on GA 365 southbound near Demorest’s Double Bridge Road. Ignoring the attempt, officials say the motorcycle sped off, turning north onto GA 365 at “very high rates of speed.”
A pursuit ensued north on GA 365. The biker, later identified as Meister, reportedly ran through the construction zone at Hulsey Road. He then drove onto Dicks Hill Parkway and Ayersville Road near Hazel Grove Elementary School.
MORE: New details emerge in chase that led to Dawsonville man’s arrest
Deputies wreck
Two Habersham County sheriff’s deputies wrecked on Ayersville Road while pursuing the motorcycle.
Reports Now Habersham obtained from Georgia State Patrol Post 7 in Toccoa state Deputy Adam Ivester, 32, was driving a patrol vehicle that traveled off the west shoulder of Ayersville Road and struck a traffic sign. Deputy John Crawford, 23, was driving a vehicle that ran off the west shoulder of the road, struck a tree, and overturned onto its driver’s side.
Crawford sustained minor injuries but was not transported to the hospital, the report states.
The fleeing motorcycle doubled back, and the chase continued onto Dicks Hill Parkway, Rock Road, Antioch Church Road, and Talmadge Drive, eventually entering Stephens County, said Habersham County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Rob Moore.
“Habersham County and Stephens County deputies continued to pursue the motorcycle into and through Toccoa, crossing GA 365 at Jeanette Jamieson Intersection, where Habersham County units called off the pursuit,” said Moore.
Stephens County deputies and the state troopers continued pursuing the motorcycle on Dicks Hill Parkway toward Habersham County, losing contact with it.
“After an extensive search involving K-9 units and a drone, the man was located off Ben Loudermilk Road and taken into custody without further incident,” said Moore.
Meister now faces charges from the three agencies involved in the pursuit and outstanding warrants in the three counties where he was wanted before the chase. Officials have not said what those prior charges were.
According to GSP, Meister was transported to Stephens County Hospital with possible minor injuries. Authorities then booked him at the Stephens County Jail.
Third chase this month
This is at least the third high-speed chase in Habersham County this month.
On March 4, a Demorest man shot and killed himself after leading Clarkesville and Demorest police and a Habersham County deputy on a high-speed chase, according to the GBI.
Four days later, on March 8, state troopers from Hall County pursued a driver into Habersham County after he fled from a traffic stop, the state patrol said. The chase ended when Demorest police officers deployed stop sticks. The driver was arrested and charged with trafficking meth, among other charges.
