Sister: Burglary Suspect Suffers From Drug Addiction

The man who has been charged with burglary and other crimes in connection to an ill-fated attempt to flee a traffic stop is addicted to drugs, his sister told WSB-TV.

Arenia Adkins told the news station that her brother, Smiths Station, Alabama, resident Anthony Reed Eden, 43, has been in and out of jail since the age of 18 for various crimes, most of which she said were related to his addiction to crack cocaine.

Sandy Springs police arrested Eden, 43, after he crashed his vehicle following an escape attempt early Tuesday afternoon.

Adkins, who told WSB-TV that her brother is a “crack addict,” also said she believed the March 24th incident was most likely propelled by Eden’s addiction.

Read the rest of WSB-TV’s report here

Officers initially responded to a suspicious vehicle call late Tuesday morning in the 5800 block of Riverside Drive. Dispatchers also received a burglary call ”in the same vicinity around the same time,” said Sandy Springs police spokesperson Sgt. Ron Momon.

A Sandy Springs officer initiated a traffic stop after the suspicious vehicle, a Ford F-150, was spotted on Interstate 285 at Riverside Drive. Momon said the driver fled from the officer for a “short distance” along the eastbound lanes of I-285 before crashing the truck at the Glenridge Drive exit ramp.

Eden was taken into custody and is being treated at Grady Memorial Hospital for minor injuries, Momon stated.

A number of items were recovered from the vehicle and are being investigated as possibly stolen. Momon said police so far have charged Eden with burglary, and additional traffic related charges could be applied as well.

Sandy Springs detectives are also investigating whether Eden is connected to other burglaries in the Sandy Springs or surrounding areas, the agency added on its Facebook page.

Eden is wanted by the Columbus, Georgia Police Department, and the Seminole County, Florida, Sheriff’s Office for vehicle theft, Momon said.

Fulton County Jail records show Eden remains at the facility.

Photo 1: Anthony Reed Eden, 43.