SHERIFF’S OFFICE
Traffic on U.S. 129/Eatonton Highway slowed considerably as drivers crossed the bridge over Cedar Creek Sunday afternoon and noticed many blue lights flashing along the roadside and under the bridge.
A fisherman had discovered a body floating in the creek, which he called and reported to the Jones County Sheriff’s Office. The responding Jones authorities, in turn, called Putnam County Sheriff’s Office when they noticed the deceased was on the Putnam County side of the creek, which flows along the county line.
As PCSO deputies Jim Barbee and Paul Bernichon were working the scene along with the Putnam County Coroner’s Office, Bernichon was notified that Morgan County had called to report a BOLO out of Locust Grove regarding a possible kidnapping. It didn’t take long for all involved to figure out that the kidnap victim and the body that was snagged on some branches in the creek were one and the same.
Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills identified the victim as Erica M. Atkins, 40, of Locust Grove. Locust Grove Police Chief Derrick Austin said Atkins was the mother of a 10-year-old and a couple of older children, the owner of Birdsong Books in Locust Grove, and she was active in the community with her bookstore. Birdsong also was named “Micro-Business of the Year” in 2022 by the Henry County Chamber of Commerce.
The Locust Grove Police Department received a missing persons call on Madison Acres Drive about 3 a.m. Sunday morning, Austin said.
“The entire family was at her house, and they were concerned something bad had happened,” he said.
Saying that the family believed the situation to be a domestic abuse case, Austin and LGPD Lt. Brandon Morris watched security footage of doorbell cameras in the gated community. The cameras revealed that Atkins’ close friend and coworker, Romero Johnson, age 38, of Norman, Oklahoma, was their suspect, Austin said. Flock cameras revealed Johnson’s vehicle had left the house and driven through Jasper and Morgan counties.
Austin said it was early in the investigation, but he believed the victim may have been killed at her residence. However, he said an autopsy would be performed by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation medical examiner to determine the cause and manner of the victim’s death.
Meanwhile, Johnson was taken into custody by LGPD and is currently housed at the Henry County Jail in McDonough, facing charges of kidnapping and murder, according to Morris.
