Update: Man found dead in home after fatal ‘head-on’ crash in Macon, deputies say

A man was found dead in a home hours after he was involved in a fatal vehicle crash Thursday, according to the Bibb County sheriff’s and coroner’s offices.

Hospital staff tried to treat his injuries shortly after the collision, but he “left against medical advice,” Coroner Leon Jones said.

The sheriff’s office initially said a person died and three others, including a child, were seriously hurt after a “head-on” collision between a Hyundai and a Dodge. Deputies were dispatched around 5 a.m. to the scene on Mercer University Drive and Edwards Avenue.

Everyone involved was taken to Atrium Health Navicent hospital.

Javaughn Raheen Hackney, the 37-year-old driver of the Hyundai, was pronounced dead by medical staff, according to deputies.

Two passengers in Hackney’s car, ages 9 and 29, and John Michael Cox, the 51-year-old Dodge driver, were in critical but stable condition at the hospital, Jones and the sheriff’s office said.

Then, Cox signed a form to be discharged against medical advice around 2:15 p.m., Jones said. Cox left the hospital with a woman who dropped him off at a duplex on Wray Place, at the end of a dead-end street.

A witness reportedly saw the woman immediately leave after she dropped off Cox, Jones said.

Then, around 3:15 p.m., deputies were dispatched to a 911 call regarding “a person down” inside the residence, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office.

Deputies found Cox “unresponsive” inside the home, and Jones pronounced him dead at the scene, the sheriff’s office said.

Cox likely died from “internal injuries” related to the crash, Jones told The Telegraph.

Investigators hadn’t been able to contact the woman Thursday evening, Jones said. It was unclear if deputies made contact with the woman by Friday morning.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation will perform an autopsy on the man.

The passengers in the Hyundai were discharged from the hospital by Thursday afternoon, deputies said.

Deputies did not release any other details about the circumstances of the crash.

The crash was still under investigation Thursday.

Anyone with related information was urged to call the sheriff’s office and ask to speak with a fatality investigator at 478-751-7500.

This story may be updated as more information becomes available.

This story was originally published March 20, 2025 at 9:31 AM.