3 arrested on drug charges during sexual assault investigation in Lilburn

A woman told police that on Sept. 11 she escaped from the house, where she was held for “an extended period” and sexually assaulted.

A woman told police that on Sept. 11 she escaped from the house, where she was held for “an extended period” and sexually assaulted.

Three people were arrested Tuesday after police searched a home linked to multiple reports of sexual assault. However, investigators have not charged the trio with any sex crimes.

Eric Duane Johnson, 44, Jose Jaime Moreno, 21, and Catherine Elizabeth Perskin, 29, were each taken into custody when police searched the home in the 5100 block of Hood Road on Tuesday.

Police started investigating after meeting with a 19-year-old who said she escaped from the home Sept. 11, department spokesman Capt. Scott Bennett said.

The young woman said she had been held there against her will for “an extended period of time” and sexually assaulted, Bennett said. Investigators believe she may have been there for as long as six weeks.

Police obtained a search warrant and planned to execute it Wednesday, Bennett said. However, a 911 call came in early Tuesday morning that forced investigators to act sooner.

According to Bennett, the caller reported a woman wandering around the neighborhood. When police spoke to the 45-year-old, she indicated that she had been held in the same home and assaulted.

Officers arrived to search the home and found Perkins, Johnson, Moreno and two other men inside, Bennett said. Police also found methamphetamine inside the house, he said. All five people were detained for questioning.

Perkins, who police believe is in a romantic relationship with one of the four men, did not make any allegations of sexual assault during a police interview, Bennett said. She, along with Johnson and Moreno, was charged with possession of methamphetamine and booked into the Gwinnett County Jail.

Bennett said no charges have been filed in the sexual assault case and that the investigation is still active.

Police did not arrest or charge the other two men. Bennett declined to say if charges will be filed against them in the future, but said: “One outcome is more likely than the other.”