Police: Gwinnett Man Identified in Cherokee County Car Crash

By Kristal Dixon

Police have identified the man behind the wheel of a car that caught fire and crashed along Highway 372 last month.

The driver has been identified as Matthew Francis Goulbourne, 23, of Duluth, said Georgia State Patrol spokesperson Franka Young.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation by Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services, spokesperson Tim Cavender said.

Cherokee Fire responded to the scene shortly before 11 p.m. July 23 on Highway 372/Ball Ground Highway near its intersection with Dodd Lane.

According to a deputy with the Cherokee Sheriff’s Office, a couple traveling westbound on the highway spotted a 1998 Honda Accord — which was on fire — traveling in the opposite direction.

The couple turned their vehicle around to check on the car when they witnessed the vehicle leave the roadway, venture through a pasture fence and travel roughly 240 feet before crashing into a ditch, Cherokee fire said in a press release.

Once the fire was extinguished, authorities found the body of the driver inside the Accord, which was “burned extensively.”

Goulbourne was a Duluth High School graduate and was studying business administration and information technology at Kennesaw State University,according to his obituary.

A memorial service was held today for Goulbourne, and a GoFundMe page has been created to help the family with expenses.

(Photo: Matthew Francis Goulbourne. Credit: GoFundMe)