Investigation finds no evidence of Athens City Hall sexual assault

By Joe Johnson

Athens police announced today that they were unable to find evidence that a University of Georgia student had been sexually assaulted last week in the area of City Hall.

The 20-year-.old student had woken up on the landing of the building’s staircase with no memory of how she got there during a night of drinking downtown with friends.

She later told her roommates that when she woke up there was a homeless man nearby masturbating and her skirt was inside out.

The roommates then urged her to be examined for possible sexual assault and police began investigating when they were notified by the hospital about the student.

Police today released the following statement:

“Following a thorough investigation, the Athens-Clarke County Police Department has concluded

there is no evidence to support that a rape occurred.

During the investigation, detectives identified fraudulent financial transaction card activity

involving the victim. This investigation resulted in financial transaction card-related charges

against Timothy Evans. Additionally, the Athens-Clarke County Police Department identified and

arrested a second suspect in connection with financial transaction card fraud. Dennie Smith, a

40-year-old male of Athens, has been charged with Financial Transaction Card Theft and

Financial transaction card fraud,

The Athens-Clarke County Police Department takes all reports of sexual assault seriously and

appreciates the cooperation of those involved throughout the investigation. If you have been

the victim of a sexual assault, resources are available through The Cottage Sexual Assault

Center and Children’s Advocacy Center (website: https://thecottagega.org/).