Two University of Georgia seniors say they are now sleeping with the lights on after their doorbell camera captured a maintenance worker wandering through their off-campus Riverbend Club apartment, drinking straight from a bottle and later trying the front doorknob in the early morning hours. The students told reporters they were scared to return to the unit and say the landlord’s response has felt slow and incomplete. The man was arrested on criminal charges, but the residents say they still do not feel safe as graduation approaches.
Video shows worker drinking and returning at 4 a.m.
Doorbell-camera footage obtained by investigators shows the maintenance worker drinking alcohol from a bottle, passing out on the living room floor, then coming back around 4 a.m. and attempting to open the door while saying, “They’re dead,” according to Atlanta News First. The students, identified in the reporting as Andrea Papacostas and Alexis Nguyen, said they reviewed the video and became so alarmed that they called police.
Police arrest and protective order
Police arrested Michael Perkins on stalking and burglary charges, and authorities set bond at $3,000, the station WTOC reported. One of the students sought a 12-month stalking protective order that a Clarke County judge granted, the station added.
Landlord's offer and confidentiality clause
Riverbend Club Apartments fired the worker and changed the locks, and after the station’s interviews the complex offered to let the students out of their lease and pay moving costs, but the offer required the residents to waive the right to sue and to acknowledge that the company was not admitting liability, according to Atlanta News First. The students told reporters the deal felt like a band-aid and that they were still searching for a safer place to finish the semester.
Why the reaction is so raw in Athens
Athens has been sensitized to fears about off-campus safety after high-profile cases in recent years, including the 2024 killing of a student found near UGA running trails, which shook the campus community, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. That history helps explain why the students and their classmates pressed for stronger, immediate protections rather than the limited steps they say the complex first offered.
Legal options and practical steps for tenants
Georgia courts can issue temporary protective orders that typically last six to 12 months and may be extended or converted to longer orders after a hearing, according to a magistrate court guide. Tenants who feel threatened are advised to document video and communications, request written confirmation of lock changes and lease options from property management, and contact campus police for escorts. Riverbend Club Apartments is listed as a student housing complex near UGA on public rental sites.
The students say they eventually reached a confidential agreement with the complex and are scrambling to move before graduation. Atlanta News First’s "Behind the Investigation" revisited the story this week, bringing renewed attention to a gap students say still exists between reporting a frightening incident and feeling truly safe at home.
