Stephen Hasner | | March 10, 2024
In Acworth, Georgia, an incident on March 3 left a 78-year-old bicyclist critically injured after being struck by a vehicle. William James Abbott, a 20-year-old man, was taken into police custody following the collision on Towne Lake Parkway. Initially facing felony hit-and-run charges, Abbott has since been cleared of this particular accusation as new details have emerged.
The Cherokee Sheriff’s Office disclosed that recent evidence indicates a possible second car’s involvement in the accident. This development comes after multiple eyewitness accounts and the discovery of a silver vehicle that had crashed into a stationary object nearby. Although the original hit-and-run charge has been dismissed, Abbott is now charged with reckless driving and operating a wireless device while driving, highlighted by FOX 5 Atlanta.
Following the accident, Abbott reportedly confessed to hiding the damaged bumper of his car in the vicinity of the crash site, which led to initial charges of evidence tampering. The current focus of the authorities, however, is the search for the additional vehicle implicated in the incident, having left the scene after hitting the bicyclist.
The accident initially caused considerable alarm among local law enforcement and residents. The injured cyclist was urgently transported to Wellstar Kennestone Hospital to receive care for life-threatening injuries. Capt. Jay Baker from the Cherokee Sheriff’s Office recounted the rapid response resulting in Abbott’s arrest, as reported by Atlanta News First.
Source: Hoodline