A Cobb County jury convicted a 23-year-old man Tuesday afternoon of kidnapping and assaulting a woman he met at a East-West Connector pharmacy.
Darrious Mathis, of Austell, was found guilty on all charges related to the October 2011 incident, including kidnapping, carjacking, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during commission of a felony, and possession of a firearm by a first-offender probationer, the Cobb County District Attorney's Office said.
A woman said Mathis forced her from a CVS parking lot, drove her around and then sexually assaulted her in Atlanta. The victim said she tried to keep Mathis calm along the way. Video surveillance footage from the CVS and DNA and physical evidence corroborated the woman's story, according to the DA's office.
"In my mind, I figured that was the best way, instead of panicking and trying to get hurt," the woman said during the trial.
Mathis, who also testified during the trial, claimed the sex was consensual, and his attorneys cited his good looks as defense. Mathis also claimed he was selling pills at the time, and the woman was a willing buyer.
Mathis' first trial six months ago ended with a mistrial when all but one juror voted to convict him. He is scheduled to be sentenced April 9.
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