An incident that began with erratic driving in a stolen vehicle in Fayette County during the early morning hours Jan. 6 ended in the death of a still-unidentified woman along I-285.

The incident began after an off-duty Fayetteville police officer observed a tan 1998 Toyota 4Runner traveling erratically and weaving in and out of traffic, according to Fayetteville police spokesperson Steve Crawshaw. The officer called in the license number, learning that the vehicle had been stolen in Gwinnett County on Jan. 3. The Fayette County Sheriff’s Department was notified of the situation, Crawshaw said.

The vehicle was later spotted near Ga. Highway 74 and Rockaway Road in south Peachtree City. A Fayette deputy picked up the vehicle heading north on Hwy. 74 at Sandy Creek Road and began pursuit, Fayette Sheriff’s Public Information Officer Belinda McCastle said. The driver pulled into the BP station near I-85 and quickly pulled back on Hwy. 74 and onto I-85 northbound, she said.

The driver of the 4Runner merged onto I-285 eastbound and crashed the vehicle near Old National Highway at 1:11 a.m., according to Ga. State Patrol (GSP) Senior Trooper Larry Schnall.

Schnall said a female passenger in a rear seat ran from the wrecked vehicle and was struck and killed by another vehicle traveling on I-285. The three other occupants of the stolen vehicle fled the area and are still at large, Schnall said. The identity of the deceased woman is still being determined, said Schnall.

The Fayette deputy pursuing the Toyota parked his patrol car in front of the woman to prevent other vehicles from striking her, Schnall said. A third vehicle struck the patrol car in the rear, though the deputy was not in the vehicle and was not injured, Schnall said.

The 4Runner has been impounded by the Fayette sheriff.

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