COLUMBIA COUNTY, Ga. – Early on the morning of December 31, a Georgia State Trooper encountered a speeding motorcycle on I-20 Westbound near the Wheeler Road Exit, around mile marker 196, according to the Georgia Department of Public Safety.

When the trooper attempted to initiate a stop, the motorcyclist chose to flee, prompting a high-speed chase by the Georgia State Patrol. The pursuit unfolded along the westbound lanes of I-20, extending to the Exit 190 interchange at SR 388 near Lewiston Road and Gateway Blvd. in Grovetown.

In a dramatic turn, the rider reportedly veered onto I-20 Eastbound, now traveling in the opposite direction from where the pursuit began, as detailed in the incident report by the Georgia Department of Public Safety.

The chase continued briefly on the eastbound stretch of I-20. However, the trooper made the decision to halt the pursuit, citing the heavy traffic conditions and the motorcyclist’s increasingly reckless driving behavior.

The pursuit traveled a short distance on I-20 Eastbound when the Georgia State Trooper decided to discontinue the pursuit due to traffic and the motorcyclist’s reckless driving. 

After discontinuing the pursuit, the Trooper continued travelling in the Eastbound direction and crested over a hill – at this point, the State Trooper saw that the motorcycle that had crashed in the center of the roadway and was fully engulfed in flames. 

The motorcyclist succumbed to their injuries on scene. 

has reached out to the Columbia County Coroner’s Office for an ID in this case