Report: 'Creeper' Spotted Again in Bartow County

Photo credit: Patch file

The man known as the Bartow County creeper was reportedly seen just hours before a community meeting was held to inform residents on how they start a neighborhood watch program to protect their children.

Bartow County Sheriff Clark Millsap informed the audience Monday evening at Adairsville High School that a man fitting the description of the suspect in past incidents was seen earlier in the day along Iron Mountain Road east of I-75 in unincorporated Adairsville, according to the Rome News-Tribune.

Read the newspaper’s report here.

Iron Mountain Road is several miles northeast of the original location residents say they’ve seen the suspect: Orchard Road and Stoners Road.

In both instances, parent said their children told them a man standing in the wood line attempted to lure them to his location. During both incidents, the suspect was described as wearing all black clothing and a black mask to cover his face.

During Monday’s community meeting, the sheriff said the agency has not only stepped up patrols in the area, but is also doing things behind the scenes he is not at liberty to discuss.

“We are doing a lot of things that you won’t ever know we’re doing until it pays off,” he said.

Sheriff’s office Capt. Richey Harrell, who oversees the sheriff’s office’s Neighborhood Watch Program, said the biggest component of the program is for residents to serve as the eyes and ears of their community for law enforcement.

Along with keeping a watchful eye on their surroundings, Harrell also said another recipe for a successful initiative is for residents to communicate with each other and, if needed, to officers about what they see.

If they see anything out of the ordinary, anything that “makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up,” do not hesitate to call 911, Harrell stated.

Over the next week, Harrell said the sheriff’s office will place neighborhood watch signs throughout the Stoners Road and Stoners Chapel Road areas.

In addition to officers increasing patrols and residents taking a more vigilant approach in their neighborhoods, Harrell said the community must take a more active role in watching their children when they are outside playing.

“We don’t live in Mayberry anymore,” he said.