Sheriff: Man shot by deputy after setting fire, wild chase

A man was shot by White County deputies Saturday after he allegedly set fire to a truck and led officials on a chase across several counties, authorities said.

Alan Paul Heinze, 53, remains in the hospital after the chaos and is facing several charges, including aggravated assault and arson, according to the GBI and Habersham County Sheriff’s Office.

The sheriff’s office was called that morning to a vehicle fire on Sutton Road in Demorest, where they found a truck engulfed in flames at a shop, according to Channel 2 Action

News. After discovering the fire was caused by an explosive device, deputies moved people off the property and secured the area.

Authorities said Heinze, of Cleveland, Georgia, had left the scene in a Penske box truck.

At around 11 a.m., a White County deputy spotted the vehicle traveling west on Highway 115, the GBI stated. Several household items, including furniture, were spilling out the back, according to the sheriff’s office.

Heinze fled from the pursuing law enforcement and eventually entered Helen Highway, where he rammed into a patrol car, disabling it, the GBI said. At one point, he allegedly tried to run over a deputy, the sheriff’s office said.

Deputies then used their vehicles to box in the truck, but were unsuccessful. The GBI said it was during that encounter that deputies shot Heinze.

But the sheriff’s office said he continued driving with a gunshot wound to his arm. The chase ended when a deputy forced him off the road at Jack P. Nix Elementary School, about 15 miles northwest of Demorest, the GBI said.

Heinze was taken to Hall County’s Northeast Georgia Medical Center for his injuries. No law enforcement members were injured during the chase, according to the GBI.