Deadly crashes in Athens, Dahlonega, murder arrest in Jefferson

Athens-Clarke County Police now say the weekend wreck that claimed the life of a pedestrian was a case of hit-and-run: police were, at last report, trying to find the driver of the car that hit and killed 26 year-old Sanchez Elder. The wreck happened Saturday night on Cherokee Road.

The GBI continues its investigation in Jackson County, where Christopher Thomas faces charges stemming from a double-shooting that happened late last week on Apple Valley Road: the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office says the 32 year-old Jefferson man shot and wounded to two men, both of whom were hospitalized. One of them, 27 year-old Joshua Smith of Commerce, later died. Thomas is charged in his murder.

Two people are arrested and booked into the Franklin County jail, charged with stealing from a convenience store in Carnesville: Randy Hill and Geraldine Miller allegedly conspired to rob the store at which Miller was working as a clerk. She’s from Social Circle; he’s from Carnesville. Police and the GBI say they falsely reported the theft as an armed robbery.

A 57 year-old man from Dahlonega is killed in a crash in Lumpkin County: the Georgia State Patrol says the single-vehicle accident that claimed the life of Robert Kukua happened on Georgia Highway 60.

There was a big fire in Habersham County: 15,000 chickens perished in the blaze that burned a poultry house in Mt Airy. There’s no word yet on how the fire started.