Several former inmates at a women's prison sued Georgia Corrections Department over rape allegations which, according to the lawsuit, began as far back as 2013.
In a report by 11 Alive, the women are claiming that former Captain Edgar Johnson used his position to sexually attack them in his office at the Emanuel Women's Facility located in Swainsboro, Georgia. The lawsuit says the alleged assaults happened in a period of four years, with some of the attacks made last year.
The women were also reportedly threatened by Johnson that he could prolong their sentences, deny paroles, and won't allow them to see their children during visits.
Casey Mincey, one of the plaintiffs, detailed in an interview her encounters with Johnson, CNN reported. The 35-year-old was serving a three-year sentence for identity fraud and has been tasked of cleaning the prison's mental health wing, where the office of Johnson was located. She noted that at first, Johnson talked about the Bible and asked her about her six children.
However, in October 2013, the chats turned into compliments on her appearance, hugs and kisses. She revealed that Johnson even slipped his hands down her pants when they hugged one time. She also claimed she was raped six times in the office of Johnson.
Another woman, who was not named, claimed that she was also raped six times while another noted she was raped on different occasions from March 2011 to April 2012.
The lawsuit was filed two days before Christmas but it has been public only two months after as the plaintiff's attorney, Walter Madison, said that the women were still "getting their strength together" for the lawsuit. Madison added that the women were "nonviolent offenders" but were treated as sex slaves and were abused in a "horrendous, deplorable fashion" that was not part of the sentences they were serving.
In May 2015, Johnson was arrested and charged with 11 counts of sexual assault on a person in custody. Months passed and investigators found out that more women have their own stories regarding their encounters with him. Johnson is now out on bond, Liberty Voice reported.
Attorney Kendall Gross, the representative of Johnson, said in a statement that his client is innocent adding that some of the evidence presented at the preliminary hearing are doubtful.
