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Demorest man accused of taking excavator on joyride charged with DUI

By FOX 5 Atlanta Digital Team
Published  October 20, 2025 6:15pm EDT
Habersham County
FOX 5 Atlanta
A 66-year-old man is arrested after deputies say he took a 30-ton construction excavator from a Habersham County animal shelter job site and drove it down Old Athens Highway on Oct. 17, 2025. article

A 66-year-old man is arrested after deputies say he took a 30-ton construction excavator from a Habersham County animal shelter job site and drove it down Old Athens Highway on Oct. 17, 2025. (Habersham County Sheriff's Office)

The Brief

    • Deputies say Danny Ross Robinson stole and drove a 30-ton excavator while intoxicated.
    • The slow-moving excavator traveled from an animal shelter job site and stopped just below power lines.
    • No vehicles or people were hit, with only a single mailbox damaged during the incident.

HABERSHAM COUNTY, Ga. - A 66-year-old Demorest man was arrested Friday night after deputies say he took a 30-ton excavator for an intoxicated joyride from a county construction site and drove it down Old Athens Highway.

What we know:

Danny Ross Robinson is charged with driving under the influence and theft by taking a motor vehicle, according to the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office.

Danny Ross Robinson

Danny Ross Robinson (Habersham County Sheriff's Office)

Callers to Habersham County E-911 reported the slow-moving Komatsu PC 290 LC excavator traveling on the highway shortly after 7:45 p.m. The machine had been parked after hours on Happy Tails Way, the gravel road leading to the new Habersham County Animal Shelter next to South Habersham Middle School.

Deputies found the excavator stopped in a private driveway about a half-mile from the job site. The boom was positioned just inches below overhead utility wires along the roadway.

Only one mailbox was damaged, officials said. The excavator did not hit any vehicles or buildings, and no injuries were reported.

Dig deeper:

The hydraulic machine runs on tracks, is roughly 11 feet wide and has a top speed of about 3.4 miles per hour, according to manufacturer specifications.

A 66-year-old man is arrested after deputies say he took a 30-ton construction excavator from a Habersham County animal shelter job site and drove it down Old Athens Highway on Oct. 17, 2025.

A 66-year-old man is arrested after deputies say he took a 30-ton construction excavator from a Habersham County animal shelter job site and drove it down Old Athens Highway on Oct. 17, 2025. (Habersham County Sheriff's Office)

What we don't know:

Authorities have not said how Robinson accessed or started the excavator after hours, whether additional charges are possible for property damage, or if security changes will be made at the animal shelter construction site. 

Officials have not released Robinson’s blood-alcohol level or said if this was his first such offense.

The Source: The Habersham County Sheriff’s Office provided the details for this article.

Habersham CountyNewsCrime and Public Safety