DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — People are still talking about a wild police chase where officers say a gunman shot at them right in the middle of Interstate 285.
DOT cameras caught the massive police presence that showed up after a pit maneuver caused the suspect’s car to crash.
The whole thing started at a nearby McDonald’s when customers called police, saying a man was flashing a gun and threatening them.
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Officers Ahmad Sulaiman, 19, of Clarkston, threatened them before getting in his car and taking off.
There was a chase, shots fired, and then the suspect ended up upside down when police forced his car off the highway.
“Oh, it was hell,” driver Gabriel Jacobs said about the backup on the interstate.
When Channel 2’s Tom Jones told him a police chase where officers say a driver shot at them before crashing is what caused the gridlock, Jacobs suggested incidents like this are happening too often.
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“Just another day in Atlanta, man,” Jacob said.
Police swarmed the suspect’s car after it flipped over and crashed on I-285 near Bouldercrest Road.
Police said it started just after 1 p.m. on Monday when they got a call about a man threatening people with a gun in this McDonald’s parking lot on Memorial Drive.
Police said Sulaiman pointed a gun at an officer before he sped away in a stolen car, hitting multiple cars in the process. He even hit an Avondale Estates police cruiser.
“That’s scary and that’s dangerous. We got innocent bystanders,” a McDonald’s customer said.
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Officers from several jurisdictions responded, and a chase began.
Police say the suspect shot at an Avondale Estates officer during the chase.
“That explains why the officer’s car was shot out,” Jacobs said.
The officer fired back.
Police used a PIT maneuver that caused the car to land on its roof.
Another driver told Jones that she saw all the police and helicopters. She said the suspect should know not to shoot at police.
“You shouldn’t be shooting at people, period,” she said, not identifying herself.
Jacobs said you never know what to expect traveling on Atlanta’s roads.
“Fortunately, nobody was hit. That’s a good thing, and they got the bad guy,” he said.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said it was investigating the officer-involved shooting part of this case.
DeKalb police said it will be handling all criminal charges that Sulaiman will face as a result of his actions.
Channel 2’s Tom Regan contributed to this story.
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