SNELVILLE, Ga. — A metro Atlanta woman said the fired Doraville police officer tied to the disappearance and death of a 16-year-old girl is the same man who she reported for stalking her for nearly a year.
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Miles Bryant, 22, was arrested in connection to the death of 16-year-old Susana Morales, whose remains were found this week. Bryant has been charged with concealing a death and false report of a crime, though warrant applications reveal that police believe Bryant raped and killed Morales before dumping her body some 20 miles away.
Channel 2 Action News has obtained exclusive video Elasha Bates says shows Miles Bryant tampering with the her doorknob of her Snellville apartment.
Channel 2′s Gwinnett County Bureau Chief Matt Johnson spoke with the Bates, who said that Bryant’s behavior was so bizarre it made her afraid for her life. It scared her so much she eventually reported it to Doraville police.
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Bates said Bryant, who was a childhood friend, reconnected with her and then spent months repeatedly trying to break into her home.
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“I knew he was capable of it,” Bates said. “When the officers asked me why he was trying to break into my apartment. I told him that I was scared and he was trying to rape me.”
Bates said that after they reconnected last March, Bryant seem to become obsessed with her and kept finding ways to try to get into her apartment.
“He’s like, ‘I’m in the neighborhood. I’ll pull up,’” Bates said. “I said, ‘No, I’ll let you know if you can ever pull up.’”
On March 19, she said someone kicked her door in and she stopped talking to Bryant because things became suspicious.
In October, a neighbor shared video with her of Bryant back at her apartment, and then two more times in December while she was at home.
Bates said a screengrab from doorbell camera footage from October of last year shows the first time she got video of Bryant at her home uninvited. She said two other videos from December showed him back at her home, covering his face and pulling on the door handle before knocking.
The incidents at Bates’ apartment were nearly five months after Gwinnett police say they believe Bryant dumped Morales’ naked body near the Barrow County line to conceal her death.
Bates said she knew Bryant was a Doraville police officer and that he’d served n the military. She said she was afraid for her life.
“I just bought cameras, got me a gun and made sure I kept it loaded,” Bates said.
A police report from Dec. 11 lists Bryant as the suspect for a suspicious activity incident. Gwinnett County police said the case was never assigned to a detective and now they’re reopening the case in light of Morales’ death.
Bates said Bryant’s arrest left her wishing more could have been done to save her life.
“I wish Susana was still here,” Bates said.
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