Almost a decade after a woman filed a police report stating she'd been drugged and sexually assaulted, her attacker is heading to prison, convicted of rape but not in her case.
In 2013, the woman we're not identifying said she and her best friend were out and responded to an ad on social media advertising free tattoos. The women were told to show up at a home in Stone Mountain.
Inside, the women said they were introduced to Laurence Innerarity and Ryan Savage.
They were immediately offered alcohol. The women said it was evident that the men wanted them drinking and that receiving a tattoo was not the real reason they were invited to the home.
Both women said after a few drinks and shots, they started feeling groggy.
When they pressed Innerarity and Savage about getting a tattoo as advertised online, one of them was taken upstairs. She said that as she was getting her tattoo, she was in and out of consciousness.
At some point, she remembered being picked up, taken downstairs, and placed on a blow-up mattress. She said she fell asleep.
It was at that time that her friend was taken upstairs. She said it wasn't clear how much time had passed but just remembered her friend coming down the stairs screaming that she'd just been sexually assaulted.
"Yeah, I was pretty hysterical," she recounted.
The woman explained, "Pretty much I wanted to be in a safe place and call the police so I asked her to you know take me home."
When the woman got home, she called the police and said she went and had a rape kit done at Dekalb Medical the same morning.
Unfortunately, years would pass with no developments from her police report or rape kit.
In the meantime, the women said they learned more about one of the men who lured them to the home.
Laurence Innerarity would become known as Peso Montana, a popular Atlanta promoter and rapper.
"They didn't stop," the woman explained.
The woman pointed out, "He was an Atlanta promoter for years, he was hosting parties and getting girls drunk for years stuff for years and nobody said anything."
They believe many remained silent out of fear.
"It wasn't about sex. It was more about power on humiliation or it's deeper than that because they did it repeatedly."
The two women said they spent years fighting a silent battle, trying to help others who wouldn't speak up.
"If all those girls in my DM (direct message) would have spoken up. Would have actually, like came forward," she said.
Fast forward nearly ten years after the women reported their assault and drugging, Peso Montana and Ryan Savage went on trial in September on one count of rape tied to a separate sexual assault case.
On October 3, both men were found guilty and sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after serving 50 years.
Both men were transferred from the Dekalb County Detention Center into state custody on Tuesday.
The two women said they've since learned their case cannot proceed due to the statute of limitations.
The women question why it took so long for the district attorney to pursue a case to actually put the two men on trial.
On Tuesday, a spokesperson for the Dekalb County District Attorney issued the following statement:
We are proud of the work that has finally held Laurence Innerarity and Ryan Savage accountable for this horrendous crime.
This case came into the District Attorney’s Office prior to DA Boston’s administration. During a review of all pending sexual assault cases, this case was identified as a priority and as one of the prime examples why our Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault Unit needed to be expanded.
Thanks to additional funding from the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners, the DV/SA Unit has doubled since DA Boston took office, giving us more resources to address these important cases.
As a result of this verdict, our office has now been in touch with more potential victims who have shared similar stories of assault at the hands of these defendants. Our team is actively investigating the new allegations.
While the women admit there were several red flags and moments they should have known better back in 2013, it doesn't change the fact they were drugged and sexually assaulted.
They hope by coming forward, sharing their horrifying ordeal the fact both Peso Montana and Ryan Savage are now behind bars, it will help other victims come forward and speak up.