A Holly Springs, GA, police officer died early Thursday morning after being dragged by a suspect during a traffic stop Wednesday night.
A Georgia Bureau of Investigation spokesperson offered limited details in a press conference Thursday afternoon.
Georgia Officer Dragged to Death at Traffic Stop, Suspect Killed
The suspect, 29-year-old Ansy Dolce of Cherokee County, was shot and killed by an officer in the incident, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said in a tweet.
June 17, 2021
Holly Springs, GA, police officer Joe Burson, 25, died after being dragged at a traffic stop Wednesday. (Photo: Holly Springs PD)
She confirmed that the officer was dragged and said he fired on the suspect.
The suspect, 29-year-old Ansy Dolce of Cherokee County, was shot and killed by an officer in the incident, the GBI said in a tweet.
Holly Springs Police Chief Tom Keheley identified the fallen officer as Joe Burson, 25. Keheley said Burson was a "new officer" who has been on the road more than a year.
The chief said Officer Burson was an "asset" to the department. "If you had the ability to clone police officers, you would want your officers to be Joe Burson," he said.
Chief Keheley said the cause for the traffic stop was speed.
"It was a simple stop," he added. "Every bit of this could have been avoided."
The GBI is investigating. Officer Burson's body was taken to the GBI lab for an autopsy, 11Alive reports.
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