It's been a couple weeks since I heard anything about the assaults on the Silver Comet. The original info was passed through the cyclist email grapevine. A cyclist reported his rather scary attack. So today I called the Cobb Police Department and got the updated scoop from Sgt. Dana Pierce. He's working closely with the detectives working the case and knows everything that's happening.
Quick summary: On March 13th a person reported two men coming out of the woods by the comet with what looked like a gun but they didn't get close enough to verify... no crime. On June 10th there was an assult. On June 16th a cyclist was knocked down and 4 suspects took the contents of his pockets before returning them... this is still a robbery and was the incident that triggered the email thread. On June 17th a cyclist spotted 4 men coming out of the treeline near the Spicewood Townhomes (anybody know what mile marker that's at?) and turned around, as he should have... no crime.
So, there are four incidents and two crimes for all of 2008. Overall makes me feel a lot better about comet safety. I called wanting to know whether there had been more attacks... whether this was becoming a common occurrence, etc. Apparently it isn't and is a small cadre of knuckleheads doing this stuff.
There's also stuff happening that should make you feel more comfortable about riding on the comet. But Sgt. Pierce asked me to not disclose it for a couple days. Which makes me awesome for having top secret info. Deal with it... lol.
Apparently tonight there will be a story on Channel 5 by Denise Dillon who talked to Sgt. Pierce earlier in the day. And she's going to interview one of the victims... my guess is that it'll be the one who made the email report to the cycling community.
Sgt. Pierce told me that most of the crime is in cars parked at the comet. GPS devices, cell phones, etc.
Still, be careful out there. Use common sense. Report anything suspicious. Ride with a buddy. If you're hot in spandex, ride with me. No, Marc, not you.
Date: 2008-07-03 08:20:34 Name: Joe, Sr. Top story today on WSB radion is "Silver Comet Trail Attacks" http://wsbradio.com/news/070308silvercomet5a.html ...
<blockquote>(WSB Radio) -- Cobb County police say the teenagers charged with attacking cyclists on the Silver Comet Trail may be involved in other crimes. Further, investigators say there may be additional victims.
The robberies occurred last month on the popular biking and jogging trail near where it passes under Austell Road.
The four youths would block the path, then knock the rider off the bike and go through his pockets, according to Sgt. Dana Pierce.
Isaac Lee Kemp, 17, of Douglasville, is being held on $25,000 bond. He is charged as an adult with aggravated assault and robbery.
The three others are juveniles ages 14 and 15 from Austell, Mableton and Douglasville and have been released to their relatives, said.
</blockquote>
Date: 2008-07-03 08:26:07 Name: Joe, Sr. Also from WSB, Don Boykin describes the incident in mid-July http://stream.streamaudio.com/wsb_am/070208boykin.asf
30 Min Swim, 10 Min Stationary Bike
