STEPHENS CO. SHERIFF’S OFFICE NEWS RELEASE:
“Thursday night, 3/14/2024, at approximately 10:24 PM, the Stephens County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) was notified of a motorcycle pursuit entering Stephens County that was currently being chased by Habersham County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies with the Stephens County Sheriff’s Office intercepted the Yamaha Motorcycle on Falls Road before the chase continued onto North Broad Street and then onto West Currahee Street.
Stephens County deputies, Habersham County deputies as well as Georgia State Patrol continued onto West Currahee Street where speeds of the pursuit exceeded 90 Miles Per Hour. Stephens County deputies lost sight of the motorcycle on Dicks Hill Parkway. The vehicle continued up Dicks Hill Parkway and Ayersville Road. A resident in the area called 911 to report the male subject abandoning his motorcycle on Foxfire Road before running into the woods. Pursuing units quickly established a perimeter in the area to contain the suspect. Deputies with Stephens County and Banks County responded to assist with drones equipped with FLIR. Once on scene, K9 Lady and her handler established a track. K9 Lady tracked through the wooded area and along the railroad tracks in the area before going up a steep embankment. Deputies then noticed a male subject in a ditch off Ben Loudermilk Road where he was taken into custody without incident.
Information initially given to Stephens County stated that the suspect fleeing was reported as a subject with Felony Murder Warrants out of Hall County, however this was later found out to not be the case.
The fleeing subject was identified as Dakota Lee Meister of Dawsonville. Meister was wanted for several outstanding warrants out of multiple counties.
The Stephens County Sheriff’s Office, Habersham County Sheriff’s Office as well as Georgia State Patrol have several pursuit-related charges on Meister.
The Stephens County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank Habersham County Sheriff’s Office (Habersham Co. Sheriff Joey Terrell), Banks County Sheriff’s Office, Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Georgia Department of Public Safety (Post 7) and Stephens County Dispatch for their professional assistance which helped with the swift capture of Meister.”
(EDITOR’S NOTE: Hall is one of the counties where Meister was wanted, according to Hall County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman B.J. Williams. “I’m seeing a State Court bench warrant for failure to appear for a traffic violation. The warrant was signed on March 4, 2024,” Williams wrote in an email Friday afternoon.)
(Pictured is K9 Lady, her handler, and SCSO and GSP officers with the captured suspect Dakota Lee Meister.)