Nickajack Cove is seen from Sand Mountain. Some Georgia lawmakers are attempting to move the state line north by a little over a mile, which would be the midpoint of the Tennessee River at this location.
Joseph SantiagoDeKalb County authorities are seeking a man who fled from deputies on horseback this morning down the side of Sand Mountain and now is the subject of a manhunt.
Sheriff Jimmy Harris said in a press release on the incident that dispatchers got a call of a man riding a horse and a woman on a four-wheeler leading a horse. The caller told authorities they knew the man and woman and that they didn't own any horses.
Deputy Jeff Bain located the pair with the horses and started checking for outstanding warrants on Joseph Santiago, 36 of Rainsville, and got a hit for criminal trespassing and harassment, Harris said.
When Bain told Santiago he was under arrest, the man fled on the horse down the side of Sand Mountain, Harris said. Neither Santiago nor the horse were injured but Santiago and the woman with him got away.
"We do know who the female subject is but [we're] not able to release the name at this time," Harris said.
Meanwhile, the DeKalb County Sheriff's Deputies are still checking addresses and friends of Santiago in the Hammondville and Valley Head areas.
New charges in DeKalb are pending, Harris said.
"Anyone with any information, please call the DeKalb County Sheriff's Office at 256-845-3801," the sheriff said.
Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or twitter.com/BenBenton or www.facebook.com/ben.benton1 or 423-757-6569.