CLASSIC CITY NEWS

The Athens-Clarke County Police Department has released the following: On February 28, 2026, at approximately 1:38 AM, ACCPD officers responded to a report of a rape that occurred in the area of 400 North Thomas Street. The investigation determined that 19-year-old Tydarius Wingfield, of Athens, GA, approached the female victim, who is a UGA student and unknown to Wingfield, and requested to walk her home. During the interaction, Wingfield forced the female behind a building

By Joe Johnson The University of Georgia Police Department has issued the following community notification: February 28, 2026 3:55 a.m. The Athens-Clarke County Police Department is currently investigating a Rape incident that occurred at approximately 1:25 a.m. in the area of 520 North Thomas Street. The victim reported that while in the area of 510 North Thomas Street she was approached by an unknown male who offered to walk her to her residence. The victim reported that

By Joe Johnson A grand jury has indicted a 26-year-old Monroe man for the alleged sexual assault of an Athens juvenile last summer. Darius Lamar Hardin was charged with statutory rape, child molestation, and sexual battery of a juvenile, according to the indictment filed Tuesday in Athens-Clarke County Superior Court. The victim was 14 at the time of the assault in October 2025, court records indicate. Hardin is free on bond and scheduled to be arraigned on April 14th.

The Gwinnett County Police Department has issued the following: (Duluth, Ga., Feb. 25, 2026) – Gwinnett County Police investigators make a human trafficking arrest after following up on a previous robbery arrest. On January 20, officers responded to a robbery call at 2000 Satellite Pointe. in Duluth. When officers arrived, they met with Changze Li (28, Buford) who let them into the apartment saying there was a burglary or robbery in progress.  When officers entered the apartm

By Joe Johnson A former University of Georgia student has pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the reported rape of a freshman in a UGA dorm room two years ago. According to a plea agreement filed in Superior Court on February 12th, 20-year-old Theodore Bennett Angell pleaded guilty to charges of aggravated assault, sexual battery, and battery in return for dismissal of the rape charge. According to court documents, Angell had choked, slapped and bit the 18-year-old victi

By Joe Johnson Damond Ladean Hewell, 44, of Hull, was arrested Wednesday afternoon when he was found outside an Athens liquor store. Officer Samuel Calderon reports that he was patrolling the high-crime area of Danielsville and Ila roads at about 4:45 pm when he noticed a car of interest parked at Norwood Package Store. The officer went to speak with the driver because of his criminal history, then saw that Hewell was in the back seat. When the man voluntarily disclosed that

By Joe Johnson A 57-year-.old homeless man was arrested Saturday morning at McDonald’s on Prince Avenue where he reportedly exposed himself to others in the dining room. Police said they responded upon receiving a report at 10:49 am about Carr sitting in one of the booths and removing a blanket to expose himself to diners. Management wanted to bar the man from the restaurant, but police took Carr into custody upon learning that the Barrow County Sheriff’s Office had a warrant

Released this evening by the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office (Gwinnett County, Ga., January 26, 2026) – On January 23, 2026, the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office Fugitive Unit arrested Brandon Walker in Lithonia, Georgia. Walker had active warrants issued by the Duluth Police Department for Statutory Rape, Child Molestation by Electronic Device, Enticing a Child for Indecent Purposes, and Creating or Possessing a Visual Medium Depicting a Minor Engaged in Sexually Explicit C

M Released this evening by the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office (Gwinnett County, Ga., January 26, 2026 )  – On January 23, 2026, the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office Fugitive Unit arrested Brandon Walker in Lithonia, Georgia. Walker had active warrants issued by the Duluth Police Department for Statutory Rape, Child Molestation by Electronic Device, Enticing a Child for Indecent Purposes, and Creating or Possessing a Visual Medium Depicting a Minor Engaged in Sexually Explic

By Joe Johnson With the Tara Baker murder trial just a week away, an attorney for the accused killer has provided the most detailed account to date of the UGA law school student’s death 25 years ago. The details are meant to contrast the slaying with an assault that Edrick Faust was previously convicted of committing that the prosecution plans to present as evidence in the trial that had been scheduled to start on January 26th. Faust was convicted of aggravated assault for an

Faust By Joe Johnson With the Tara Baker murder trial just a week away, an attorney for the accused killer has provided the most detailed account to date of the UGA law school student’s death 25 years ago. The details are meant to contrast the slaying with an assault that Edrick Faust was previously convicted of committing that the prosecution plans to present as evidence in the trial that’s scheduled to start next Monday. Faust was convicted of aggravated assault for an inci

Released today by the Northern Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office At the District Attorney's Office, we believe in the existence of monsters, and things that go bump in the night. We strive everyday to hold them accountable, and remove them from the world. One such monster, Jason Edward Vaughn, learned his fate this week, in particular that he will never breathe air as a free man again. After being found GUILTY by a Madison County jury last year of Aggravated Sexual

Released this morning by the Gwinnett County Police Department (Norcross, Ga., Jan. 14, 2026) – Gwinnett County Police VICE Investigators arrest a 36-year-old for trying meet up with a 14-year-old female.  On January 5, the VICE Unit conducted an ICAC (Internet Crimes Against Children) undercover investigation into a man who believed he was communicating with a 14-year-old female via the internet.  Jonathan Dismang (36, McDonough) sent explicit pictures of himself and was req

The following was released today by the Gwinnett County Police Department (Lawrenceville, Ga., Jan. 9, 2026) – Gwinnett County Police Special Victim Unit detectives arrested a Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Deputy during an investigation involving a minor. On January 5, SVU detectives received a report where a parent had found elicit messages from an adult to her teenage daughter under 16 years of age.  During the investigation, Rylee Willis (21, Stone Mountain) was identified as

By Joe Johnson Athens police recently encountered several people who were out to catch sexual predators. They came across one group at the QT on Atlanta Highway when investigating a report that they were following a male, stating that he was trying meet with w14-year- old. When they got there, police said they met with a woman from Lawrenceville and man from Hull “who told us that they had set up their own child predator blah blah blah sting operation.” The pair explained t

Classic City News has previously reported about the former cop being arrested for molesting and exploitating a juvenile female member. Now the United States Department of Justice has just released the following additional information:  GAINESVILLE, Ga. – Former Athens-Clarke County Police Officer Amber Nicole Ferguson has been indicted on charges of production and attempted production of child sexual abuse material, possession of child sexual abuse material involving a mino

By Joe Johnson An Athens-Clarke County grand jury this week indicted a 42-year old man who allegedly assaulted a young girl over period and two years. When police arrested Daniel Lee Grier of Johnson Drive last summer police said that he’d been molesting the victim since August 2022. The grand jury on Tuesday charged Grier with three counts of child molestation, aggravated sodomy, and two counts each of aggravated child molestation and aggravated sexual battery,. Grier rema

By Joe Johnson The United States Department of Justice will be prosecuting a former Athens police officer who allegedly molested female juvenile relatives. Amber Nicole Ferguson may have broken federal laws by sending videos of the molestation to someone in another country, according to Brad Smith the district attorney in Jackson County, where Ferguson allegedly committed the crimes. Ferguson was a patrol officer for the Athens-Clarke County Police Department in January when

The United States Department of Justice has released the following ATHENS, Ga. – A Georgia man who admitted to sexually exploiting a child by sending explicit instructions for the abuse of a young girl over social media was sentenced to serve more than 21 years in prison for his crime. William Barnett, II, 33, of Athens, was sentenced to serve 262 months in prison to be followed by ten years of supervised release by U.S. District Judge Tilman E. “Tripp” Self, III, on Nov. 10,

By Joe Johnson A University of Georgia law professor is being investigated for allegedly not disclosing his HIV-positive status before having sex with an Athens man. According to police, the 23-year-old man reported that he met the professor through the Grindr social networking app in November 2024 and they had sex at the professor’s home. Police said the professor is being investigated under the state law that makes it a felony “for a person living with HIV to knowingly en