CHEROKEE COUNTy, Ga. – Cherokee County deputies have arrested a 17-year-old accused of crashing into a school bus this week before running from the scene and stealing a van to get away, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Timothy Kimbarl of Dahlonega turned himself in Friday morning, Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Capt. Jay Baker said in a news release.
The teen had injuries to his face and admitted to being the driver of the Honda Accord that slammed into a Cherokee County school bus head-on Tuesday morning, Baker said.
After the wreck, Kimbarl got out of the Accord, ran away and escaped in a stolen Chevrolet van, authorities said. The van was recovered Friday morning in Dawson County.
Leads in the case came Thursday morning when deputies responded to a “suspicious vehicle” call on Sparks Lane near Yellow Creek Road in the northeast part of the county, according to officials.
A resident called police after seeing a truck near the end of their street as well as a woman with a head injury, Baker said.
A short time later, a man identified as Jordan Payne emerged from the woods near the truck, which turned out to be stolen, according to police
The man and woman left the scene before deputies arrived after getting picked up by someone else.
“Later that morning, deputies got a call that the injured female was with authorities in Dawson County,” Baker said. “Deputies made contact with the female and determined she had been reportedly assaulted by Payne in Cherokee.”
Deputies ultimately arrested him at an address in Forsyth County.
Though Payne, 22, of Dawsonville, was not in the car with Kimbarl at the time of Tuesday’s school bus crash, authorities believe the two are responsible for a string of car thefts in the area where Cherokee, Forsyth and Dawson counties meet.
Kimbarl was booked on charges of hit-and-run, theft of a motor vehicle and several traffic violations, Baker said. He is being held at the Cherokee County Adult Detention Center in lieu of $8,496 bond.
Payne faces charges of aggravated assault by strangulation, kidnapping, simple battery and simple assault. He was also charged with two counts of battery. Payne is being held without bond, Baker said.
This story was written by Shaddi Abusaid for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
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