Deputy kills armed man in shootout on Hall County road, GBI says
(FOX TV Stations)
HALL COUNTY, Ga. - The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is investigating a deadly shooting involving a deputy in Hall County Tuesday night.
The GBI says the incident began around 9:45 p.m. when a 911 caller reported a vehicle stopped in the middle of F. Gilmer Road just off Highway 52.
A responding deputy found a man, identified as 25-year-old Gainesville resident Javier Manuel Soto, and a woman standing outside the vehicle.
Moments later, the GBI says Soto pulled out a weapon and fired at the deputy multiple times, one of which hit the deputy in his duty belt. The deputy returned fire, hitting and killing Soto.
The woman fled the scene into some nearby woods. She was later found by law enforcement and taken to a local hospital for evaluation.
The deputy was not hurt in the shooting.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation will take the lead to investigate whether any charges should be made in connection with the shooting.
This is the 97th officer-involved shooting the GBI has been asked to investigate this year.