*A 70-year-old man Gainesville Police had been looking for since early 2024 has been arrested. Johnny Walter Whiting was picked up over the weekend at the Union County Jail in Blairsville by Hall County sheriff’s deputies. A spokesman for the Gainesville Police Department says Whiting was wanted in connection with a February 2, 2024, incident that occurred in the Home Depot parking lot on Dawsonville Highway.
*A motorist escaped serious injury Sunday morning when his SUV wrecked about 9:00 on Clarks Bridge Road near Maynard Circle, according to the state patrol. Troopers said late Monday Austin Peck, 24, of Gainesville, was traveling south on Clarks Bridge Road, failed to negotiate a curve, and traveled off the roadway. The vehicle then struck a ditch and overturned before striking a tree with its left side. “Mr. Peck had a visible injury and was placed under arrest for Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol,” their report says.
Later that night another DUI crash in Hall County sent one person to the hospital: HCSO: DUI crash sends driver to hospital
*A 25-year-old man faces three counts of child molestation following his recent indictment by a Hall County Grand Jury. The Hall County Sheriff’s Office Warrant Service Unit picked Andres Ortiz-Gonzalez up Tuesday, according to a sheriff’s office spokeswoman. A spokesman for the Gainesville Police Department which issued the warrants for his arrest explained in an email the origin of the case. “…mother of victim called to report that her ex-boyfriend, Ortiz-Gonzales, had allegedly touched her son’s penis two years ago. The child told his mother…about the alleged crime. The victim was 11 at the time the report was taken.”