A Georgia bookstore owner has been found dead in a creek after she was allegedly kidnapped and killed by an employee she previously dated.
On Monday (March 6), the body of 42-year-old Erica Atkins, who was reported missing on Sunday (March 5), was discovered by a fisherman in Cedar Creek just miles away from her bookstore, Birdsong Books, per 11Alive News.
Police arrested 38-year-old Romero Johnson, an employee who previously dated Atkins, on charges of kidnapping and murder in connection to her death. Investigators tracked down Johnson using cameras after he was identified as a suspect.
According to a warrant obtained by 11Alive News, surveillance footage shows a person "grab a sheet or plastic lining from the garage and take it to cover Atkins' body in the driveway [of her home]."
The father of Atkins' youngest child confirmed to Fox 5 Atlanta that Johnson and the bookstore owner had previously dated.
"Seems so unreal, she was [one of] my childhood best friends, praying for her kids and family. I'm going to miss you Erica," one social media user commented under a video of Atkins dancing in her bookstore.
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