July 13, 2021
By: Dwayne Page
An arrest has been made in a 2018 DeKalb County fatal hit and run case.
34 year old Anthony Hartle was picked up in Warren County Tuesday on a DeKalb County grand jury sealed indictment for vehicular homicide in the death of 51 year old Gyula Gulyas of Brush Creek and originally from Hungary.
Gulyas’ body was found on Highway 70 in front of DeKalb Middle School early on Sunday, morning December 9, 2018, the victim of a fatal hit and run.
According to Trooper Bobby Johnson of the Tennessee Highway Patrol, a motorist spotted the body lying in the highway around 2:40 a.m. that morning and reported it to 911. Its not known exactly what time the hit and run occurred.
Trooper Johnson said Gulyas had been at Twisted Oaks on Highway 70 earlier and as he started to leave the parking lot his Kia Soul got stuck in a ditch. Gulyas later got a ride into town and was dropped off near the hospital. That was the last reported sighting of Gulyas alive.
Although the Tennessee Highway Patrol had not identified the person or vehicle responsible for the hit and run at the time officials believed the automobile was a silver colored 2006 to 2010 model Jeep Commander SUV because of paint chips and pieces of a front grill found on the highway near the body.
Hartle was later identified as a suspect and after a THP investigation the case was taken to the DeKalb County Grand Jury where a sealed indictment was returned against him for vehicular homicide. Hartle has remained at large for several months since that indictment was handed down but authorities got a tip this week that Hartle was staying at a town house in McMinnville and they found him there. He was placed in custody.