PAULDING COUNTY, GA — Paulding County prosecutors are asking anyone who may have been victimized by a man accused of raping people across three metro Atlanta counties over three decades to come forward.
District Attorney Robert Lane says Bobby Lee Hart Jr. is linked to at least 25 victims.
“Based on the information developed so far, we believe Mr. Hart has been operating in Douglas, Cobb and Paulding counties since 1988,” Lane said. “All of these victims were found within the Highway 92 corridor between Cobb, Douglas and Paulding counties.”
According to investigators, the first reported case dates to 1988 and involved an 11-year-old victim who was a cousin of Hart. The alleged rape was never reported to law enforcement.
Investigators say five cases were identified during the 1990s involving victims ages 13 to 17. They say another five cases were identified during the 2000s, including the first adult victim.
During the 2010s, investigators identified about eight cases and say DNA entered into the CODIS database matched a 2016 case. Officials say four additional cases have been identified from the 2020s.
Hart is being held without bond in the Cobb County Jail on felony charges including rape and false imprisonment.