On Tuesday, January 1, 2019, at approximately 4:35 am., Officers were dispatched to the report of a suspicious person at the Ameris Bank located at 1275 Riverstone Parkway. As units responded, dispatch advised the caller relayed she could see from her residence what appeared to be an individual attempting to make forcible entry into the bank ATM. As Officers arrived on the scene, a male wearing a black jacket and yellow face mask suddenly dropped a green fence-post and took off running toward the rear of the parking lot. Officers immediately began searching the area where the suspect was last seen and eventually located the person hiding in the bushes near the rear of the bank and took him into custody without further incident. The perpetrator was charged with a number of felony crimes regarding this incident and also accused of an additional burglary from where he attempted to break into a self-pay kiosk located at the Wash Factory Express car wash next to the bank earlier that morning.
Chief Mark J. Mitchell stated, “I am proud of the alert and quick work of our Officers and for the partnership, we have with citizens in our community who are willing to get involved to help stop criminal activity. This excellent example of Law Enforcement and the Community working together allowed us to apprehend the male before he got away to potentially be involved in further criminal acts. Taking this perpetrator off the streets in our City goes a long way toward improving our Quality of Life.”
Suspect:
Forrest Andrew Leach - age: 55 of Acworth, Ga.
Charges:
Criminal Damage to Property (Second Degree) – 2cts. (F);
Possession of Tools for the Commission of a Crime (F);
Obstruction of an Officer (M);
