Innocent bystander loses her life to suspect during high-speed chase in DeKalb County

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. - An innocent bystander was hit and killed by a suspect during a chase with law enforcement in DeKalb County Saturday afternoon.

"It’s a sad situation," Dereck Muhammad told FOX 5.

Muhammad said he watched the entire situation unfold from the street corner where he was selling newspapers. 

Georgia State Patrol told FOX 5 the incident began at 2:10 p.m. when two troopers saw the driver of a gold Infinity SUV speed by and run a red light without a tag. They immediately turned their sirens on.

At first, the suspect turned into a gas station parking lot, but then continued going and began a chase.

At some point, a passenger jumped out of the SUV while it was still moving.

"The two state patrols was behind this tan truck. The guy who was driving, he ends up going through the light, he cuts through the gas station, jumps over the median, so he pretty much got away from the officers at that point … maybe five to seven minutes later, they’re coming back down Memorial Drive going so fast. I’m looking at the light … I’m like, this is not going to end well," he recalled.

The troopers continued the chase to Memorial Drive near North Hairston Road where the suspect attempted to run a second red light, but crashed into a blue Honda Civic.

"He smacked her driver side of the car … she never saw it coming," Muhammad told FOX 5.

The suspect ditched his car to tried his luck on foot, but was arrested shortly after.

The driver of the Civic received medical attention from DeKalb County Fire and AMR EMS. Unfortunately, she didn't make it. The DeKalb County Medical Examiner's Office was called to collect her body from the scene.

Her identity has not been released.

A woman who identified herself as Trina told FOX 5 she was one of two other drivers involved in the crash.

"The police was chasing him, he hit her and both of them hit me," she recalled.

Trina said her adrenaline was still pumping as she described the incident, but she told FOX 5 she was grateful no one in her car was injured. 

"Thank God that we’re okay because I had my children and my grandchildren in the car," she said.

GSP told FOX 5 the suspect was facing felony warrants from the Newton County Sheriff's Office for fleeing, giving a false name and date of birth to a law enforcement officer and driving on a suspended license. The suspect also had multiple warrants from Douglas County for failure to appear. In Saturday afternoon's fatal incident, he was charged with fleeing, reckless driving, driving on a suspended license, DUI, obstruction and homicide by vehicle in the first degree.

His identity has also not yet been released.