HABERSHAM CO. SHERIFF’S OFFICE NEWS RELEASE:
“The man charged after today’s manhunt in the Demorest and Cornelia
areas has been identified as Marvin Scott, 45, of Gainesville.
Scott is charged by the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office with theft by receiving
stolen property (vehicle), obstruction of an officer, obscured or missing license
plate, and driving while license suspended or revoked.
Some media outlets have asked how officers were able to determine the vehicle
was stolen since there was duct tape over some of the numbers. A partial tag and
the vehicle description were enough to trigger that the vehicle matched one stolen
in DeKalb County, prompting the traffic stop to investigate further.
EARLIER UPDATE:
HABERSHAM CO. SHERIFF’S OFFICE NEWS RELEASE:
Teamwork from almost every law enforcement agency in Habersham County
led to the arrest of the man accused of driving a stolen car early Thursday.
Around 4 a.m., an on-duty Baldwin police officer alerted the Habersham
County Sheriff’s Office that a vehicle traveling in the unincorporated portion
of the county was returning stolen from DeKalb County.
Habersham County Sheriff’s Cpl. Adam Ivester performed a traffic stop on
the vehicle on Ga. 365 at Demorest-Mt. Airy Highway.
“At which point, the driver bailed out of the car and fled on foot,” Ivester
said.
That individual was described as a black male wearing blue jeans and a
white tank top.
That set into motion a nearly four-hour manhunt in the Demorest and
Cornelia areas.
A search perimeter was established by sheriff’s deputies and local police
departments, and a Banks County Sheriff’s Office K-9 team and Georgia
State Patrol Aviation assisted with the search.
Just before 8 a.m., an individual at Hampton Inn reported seeing the man
hiding behind a tree in the woods near that establishment so officers
saturated that area and took the man into custody between Hampton Inn
and McGahee-Griffin & Stewart Funeral Home.
The man, who refused to give his name, will be charged with theft by
receiving stolen vehicle, obstruction for running, and concealing a tag.
“He used duct tape to cover the numbers,” Ivester said.
Demorest Elementary School and Wilbanks Middle School on Demorest-Mt.
Airy Highway were checked and cleared by officers prior to the school day to
ensure no one was on campus or had broken in following the traffic stop,
and school resource officers and administrators kept a close watch to ensure
the safety of students, staff, and parents.
Deputies had no information to indicate the individual who fled was armed or
posed a danger to the public, and a K-9 team had tracked the individual to
the area of the Highway 385 exit in Cornelia, so officers were confident he
was not in the area of the schools by the time students began to arrive.
A social media post alerting the public to the ongoing manhunt turned up
several tips, but it was the call from Hampton Inn that led officers to the
individual.
Officers from Baldwin, Clarkesville, Cornelia, Demorest, and Tallulah Falls
police departments assisted in the search, along with Banks County Sheriff’s
Office and Georgia State Patrol Aviation.
“We want to thank all these other agencies for helping bring this search to a
close the best way possible – the arrest of the person we were looking for,”
said Sheriff Joey Terrell.
At the time of this release (9:40 a.m.), the man continued to refuse to give his name to
officers at the detention center.”
(Photo by Habersham Co. Public Information Officer Rob Moore)
EARLIER UPDATE:
The nearly four-hour search led to the arrest of a man accused of driving a vehicle reported stolen in DeKalb County.
He was taken into custody without incident in the woods between Hampton Inn and McGahee-Griffin & Stewart Funeral Home in Cornelia (just off Ga. 365 and Ga. 385) shortly after 8 a.m.
EARLIER STORY:
The object of the search is a suspected car thief.
HABERSHAM CO. SHERIFF’S OFFICE FACEBOOK POSTING:
Multiple law enforcement personnel are involved in a manhunt near Ga. 365 between the Cornelia exit and Demorest-Mt. Airy Highway.
Shortly after 4 a.m., officers stopped a vehicle that returned as stolen from DeKalb County.
A black male wearing a white tank top and blue jeans ran from the vehicle near Demorest-Mt. Airy Highway.
Tracking is ongoing near Iron Ore Road toward Cornelia.
At this point, the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office does not know for certain whether the man is armed, but investigators do not believe he is a threat to the general public.
Anyone who sees a man matching the description is asked to dial 9-1-1 immediately and not approach him.
School resource officers are aware of the situation and are taking appropriate precautions at schools on Demorest-Mt. Airy Highway”.