Fugitive Arrested After ‘Volatile’ Manhunt Following High-Speed Chase in Meriwether County
A dangerous, all-night manhunt in Meriwether County, Georgia, came to a dramatic end last week after a wanted man led deputies on a destructive, high-speed chase that endangered both law enforcement and the public. Authorities have identified the man as 35-year-old Rontravious Porter, who was wanted on multiple violent felony charges out of neighboring Clayton County.
The ordeal began early Sunday, November 23, when the Meriwether County Sheriff’s Office received a “Be On the Lookout” alert. Officials say their automatic license plate reader system, known as FLOCK, flagged Porter’s 2013 Honda Accord entering the county.
When deputies attempted a traffic stop near 1:30 a.m. on Alvaton Road, Porter allegedly refused to pull over, initiating the perilous pursuit. The Meriwether County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the situation escalated quickly, saying Porter drove his vehicle onto a dead-end road where he struck a patrol car in an effort to escape. The chase then continued onto Luthersville Road, where officials say Porter deliberately tried to ram a second deputy’s vehicle head-on.
“Our patrol deputies and investigators were placed in great peril during this very volatile situation,” said Meriwether County Sheriff Chuck Smith. “I am grateful that none of our citizens, our personnel nor any other responding agencies were seriously injured during this potentially deadly encounter.”
To bring the moving threat to an end, deputies deployed Stop Sticks, which successfully flattened the vehicle’s front tires. Despite this, Porter allegedly kept driving until deputies performed a maneuver to force the car off the road in the Woster area. The car then crashed through a fence before finally stopping.
At that point, the high-speed chase transitioned into a full-scale manhunt. Porter fled on foot into a heavily wooded area, prompting law enforcement to set up a containment perimeter. The search effort expanded quickly, bringing in drone operators from Coweta County and K-9 units from both Fayette County and the Fayetteville Police Department.
The intense search lasted into the early morning hours until a drone operator detected a heat signature that led deputies to the suspect. Porter was finally apprehended when he ran out of the woods and into a roadway, attempting to stop a civilian vehicle. Instead of stopping, he collided with the vehicle’s windshield and driver’s side door, allowing deputies to reach him within moments.
Porter was taken into custody and immediately transported by emergency services to an Atlanta-area trauma hospital for treatment of his injuries.
The charges Porter was originally wanted for in Clayton County are significant and include aggravated assault, kidnapping, cruelty to children in the first degree, and possession of a weapon during a crime. Following the chase, he now faces multiple new charges in Meriwether County, including two counts of aggravated assault on a peace officer and felony fleeing and attempting to elude. The Georgia State Patrol has taken over the investigation into both the collisions involving the patrol car and the civilian vehicle.
