A 66-year-old man got arrested after he took off – albeit very slowly – in a 71,000-pound excavator in Habersham County, Georgia.
The Sheriff’s Office posted October 20 on Facebook that the man was seen operating the excavator around 7:45 p.m. down Old Athens Highway in "an after-hours joy ride." The 196-horsepower PC290LC has a top speed of 3.4 mph.
About 15 minutes later, deputies found the man and excavator parked in a private driveway about half a mile from the jobsite, a new county animal shelter. They noted the boom was just inches below utility wires along the highway. Not much damage was done, just a mailbox in his path, and no one was injured. The excavator was also unharmed.
The man was arrested on charges of driving under the influence and theft by taking a motor vehicle.
