Atlanta police are investigating a sexual assault at Opera nightclub after video of the incident was posted on Facebook.
Officer Jarius Daugherty said the department received calls from people who had seen the assault on a Facebook Live video early Sunday morning.
On Monday, Atlanta police announced they had identified and contacted the man seen in the video. They are not releasing his name, but said the investigation is continuing.
The video streamed on Facebook Live from inside the club on Crescent Avenue in Midtown, “appears to show a woman being sexually assaulted in a local nightclub,” Daugherty told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
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Police said Monday the woman is no longer in Georgia but is cooperating with investigators. It is the policy of the AJC to not name victims of sexual crimes.
According to Channel 2 Action News, the woman was celebrating her birthday Saturday at the popular nightclub when she was sexually assaulted.
She told police someone put drugs in her drink and then sexually assaulted her on the dance floor, Channel 2 reported.
The woman, who was already streaming her celebration on Facebook Live, captured the attack as it happened and continued to stream the video.
According to a police report obtained by the AJC, a caller told police she saw a video of a woman being groped and possibly “being raped” as she screamed “No, stop!”
Officers arrived at the nightclub and met with security, but could not find the victim. By the time officers looked at the video, they realized it was recorded an hour before they arrived.
According to police, the video showed the woman on the dance floor while an unidentified man assaulted her. The woman can be heard screaming for the man to stop and calling for help.
Video of the sexual assault has since been removed from Facebook. The woman later posted a video saying she was OK, Channel 2 reported.
In a statement on its Facebook page, management for Opera nightclub said they are cooperating with the investigation.
“At this time we have met with the Atlanta Police Department and have provided them with everything they have requested,” read the statement posted Sunday. “We will continue to aid and support their investigation in any way we can.”
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