Man arrested after trying to flee from two wrecks

Published 8:15 pm Monday, March 26, 2018

Ismar Lopez, 25, was arrested after allegedly attempting to flee from wrecks involving another car and a LaGrange Police vehicle Saturday.

The wreck occurred at Morgan Street around 10:37 p.m., according to the police report.

The officer whose vehicle was hit said he was traveling on Morgan Street when he heard a vehicle approaching from behind lock up its brakes and begin to skid. The officer said he was unable to avoid the collision, and his vehicle was struck in the rear by Lopez’s.

The officer said Lopez then continued on Morgan Street at a low speed, but then began to drive away as he initiated his blue lights to warn oncoming traffic of the wreck. The officer then radioed the accident to 911, according to the police report.

The officer then followed Lopez as he veered into the northbound lanes briefly.

He then steered back toward the southbound lanes, struck another vehicle as it traveled in the southbound left turn lane and rolled to a stop at the Morgan Street and Whitesville Road intersection.

The driver who was struck told police said he was traveling on Morgan Street in the left turn lane when his vehicle was struck from behind by Lopez’s.

The driver said he had back and neck pain and was taken to WellStar West Georgia Medical Center, according to the police report.

Lopez told an officer that his vehicle’s brakes failed when he hit the police vehicle, according to the police report.

According to the Troup County Jail arrest/release report, Lopez is charged with fleeing/attempting to elude officer, operating vehicle without driver’s license, leaving the scene of an accident, failure to maintain minimum insurance, driving too fast for conditions, reckless driving and following too closely.

Train entered

Two suspects allegedly tried to burglarize a stopped train by Horace King Bridge and Greenville Street Saturday around 3:11 p.m.

A man told police the train was stopped so they could turn it around.

When the crew was bringing the engines from the eastern end of the train to the western end, he saw two men breaking into the top container on a car.

The suspects took off running when they were spotted, according to the police report.

The train car’s door was open when the officer arrived, and it contained pallets of large clay pots, according to the police report. Police were unable to determine if anything was taken.

Restaurant burglarized

P-Nut’s Chicken & Fish on East Depot Street was allegedly burglarized Sunday between 5:30 p.m. and 7:06 p.m.

The owner told police the only items missing were a cash register valued at $319 and no more than $20 in assorted change.

The owner told police when he was at home, he received a call from a neighbor who said they heard someone inside the business.

According to the police report, officers discovered a broken window and a cash register receipt paper scrolled through the parking, lot leading into a small foot path through the woods. An officer followed the paper trail and found $2 worth of change and part of the register in the woods.

The restaurant’s back door was damaged after the suspects used a large rock left beside the door, according to the police report. A large piece of busted concrete that was used to shatter the window was located inside the business. A set of burglar bars was also forcibly removed from inside the window, according to the police report.

A witness told police that she saw three to five juveniles standing behind the business near the dumpster between 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Another witness told police she heard the glass break to the business, and by the time she made it outside, there was no one around the business.

She further said that there were two younger male juveniles on the sidewalk in front of her residence who told her they had seen a male break the window and run into the woods.

All information in this report is gathered from local law enforcement and public safety reports and releases.