FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE…
Saturday, May 11, 2013
Body Recovered in Floodwaters Near Plainville Believed to Be That of Man Who Fled From Deputies Days Earlier…
Sheriff Mitch Ralston Reports:
Late Tuesday night, May 7, a deputy sheriff attempted to stop a suspicious vehicle for a traffic violation near Plainville. The vehicle fled, leading deputies on a chase to Thomas Bluff Road where the truck travelled into impassable floodwaters. A passenger emerged from the truck and obeyed the deputies’ commands to come out of the water, but the driver emerged and swam away in the darkness out of sight. The passenger gave deputies a name for the driver which was later confirmed as being fictitious. Fire/Rescue personnel responded to the scene and searched the dangerous waters in boats for several hours without result.
Late Friday night (May 10), a person identifying herself as a family member contacted the Sheriff’s Office and told deputies that she believed that her missing brother had a been the driver who’d fled from the deputies into the water Tuesday night. Deputies met with other Family members Saturday morning and obtained more detailed information, including a description of the missing man.
Based upon this information, personnel from the Sheriff’s Office including the Sheriff’s Air Unit, Gordon County Fire/Rescue, and the Georgia DNR initiated an air & water search. At approximately 2:30 pm today (May 11 ), deputies located the body of JEFFREY COUCH, age 50, of a Plainville, Georgia, address, submerged in the floodwater. The body was removed and turned over to the County Coroner. The body will be sent to the GBI Crime Laboratory in Decatur, Georgia to undo a post-Mortem examination.
Although investigating officers believe that COUCH was in fact the driver of the truck Tuesday night, it is not known why he fled other than to evade deputy sheriffs.
Sheriff Ralston thanked all of the public safety personnel who participated in this operation, especially in light of the inherent dangers of floodwaters.