CAMDEN COUNTY, Ga. – A Camden County Sheriff’s Office deputy was injured in a fiery crash after a high-speed chase that lasted nearly 30 minutes and spanned more than 40 miles in the early morning hours of January 6.
The chase started in McIntosh County, Georgia when a police officer clocked a vehicle speeding over 121 mph going south on Interstate 95 just after 3 a.m.
The officer attempted a traffic stop, but the driver, identified as 35-year-old Olorsor Larose, did not and instead turned off his headlights and drove faster, reaching 150 mph. Stop sticks were deployed on I-95 in Glynn County, but the vehicle continued at speeds exceeding 100 mph.
Dash camera videos showed the driver led deputies on a dangerous chase and weaved through dozens of vehicles.
JUST IN: Here is the dash camera footage from the high-speed chase at the beginning of January that ended in serious injuries for an officer. He is still recovering. @wjxt4 READ MORE: https://t.co/mOmyosXDLv pic.twitter.com/7dBK5dqoOG
— Emily Boyer (@Wjxt4EmilyBoyer) January 18, 2021
At 3:30 a.m., just before mile marker 1 on I-95 southbound, Camden County Sheriff’s Deputy Thigpen used a PIT maneuver on the car. Dashcam videos show the vehicle bounced off the guardrail and hit the Camden County Sheriff’s Deputy’s vehicle, which flipped the police vehicle several times.
The impact from either the deputy’s vehicle or the suspect’s vehicle also hit an unoccupied broken down vehicle that was parked on the side of the interstate. The abandoned vehicle burst into flames.
Deputy Thigpen was taken to Shands Hospital in Jacksonville in serious condition. Thigpen suffered a fractured knee, torn tendons in his right elbow, and other non-life-threatening injuries, but underwent extensive treatment in the hospital.
A GoFundMe to help the officer and his family says Deputy Thigpen will have surgery to reattach ligaments in his arm. Thigpen’s wife has taken leave from work to travel back and forth from Georgia to Jacksonville.
The driver of the vehicle being pursued was unharmed, according to GSP and jail records.
When officers approached the crash, they said Larose was seen trying to light a cigarette. He was arrested, taken to the hospital, and then booked into the Camden County Jail.
GSP said Larose was a person who had been reported missing out of New Jersey. A note in the missing person’s report said Larose may be endangered, mentally unstable and at risk of committing suicide.
Camden County Sheriff's Office released the mugshot for Olorsor Larose, 35. Police said Larose led officers on a high-speed chase through McIntosh, Glynn, and Camden Counties @wjxt4 pic.twitter.com/4UWTpK9sC5
— Emily Boyer (@Wjxt4EmilyBoyer) January 7, 2021
The preliminary investigation shows officers did not find Larose had any additional reason to evade police, saying other than reckless driving, Larose was not doing anything else that was illegal. He was also seen throwing items out of the car as officers chased him on Interstate 95, but items that were recovered were not illegal to possess, according to GSP.
The chase and crash elicited a massive response from first responders and I-95 southbound was shut down for several hours from 3 a.m. to before 10 a.m. Wednesday morning.
The Darien Police Department, McIntosh Sheriff’s Office, Camden County Sheriff’s Office, Georgia State Patrol, and Camden County Fire Rescue all responded to the crash scene and chase.
In Camden County, Larose is charged with two felonies, including being a fugitive from justice and aggravated assault, and three misdemeanors including speeding, reckless driving, and fleeing police.
Larose faces additional charges in McIntosh County’s jurisdiction.