On Friday, September 16, 2022 at approximately 2 pm, Deputy Villagomez with the Chattooga County Sheriff’s Office stopped a white Ford passenger car on Highway 27 in the area of Silver Hill road. The driver was stopped for speeding after being clocked traveling northbound at 83 mph in a 65 mph zone.
Deputy Villagomez made contact with the driver, Derricus Camp, age 40, of an Atlanta and Summerville address. Deputy Villagomez explained the reason for the stop and detected a strong odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle. Deputy Villagomez asked the driver to step out of the vehicle for field sobriety testing and to conduct a search of the vehicle. The driver looked at Deputy Villagomez and said “I gotta go” and immediately sped from the stop almost running over the foot of the deputy.

Deputy Villagomez ran to his patrol vehicle and began to pursue the vehicle. A Georgia State Trooper traveling south through Gore clocked the white Ford passenger car at 117 mph near the Summerville Motel. The trooper turned around and also began to pursue the vehicle. Deputy Villagomez lost sight of the vehicle going up Taylor Ridge and was flagged down by a motorist who saw the vehicle leave the roadway near the top of the ridge. The driver suffered fatal injuries. The Georgia State Patrol is investigating the crash.