Atlanta

Cyberattack on city preventing people from getting back items seized as evidence

By Carl Willis
By Carl Willis

ATLANTA — People say they are still having problems with the city of Atlanta because of a cyberattack that has crippled some services.

The ransomware cyberattack has been causing headaches across several of the city’s municipal departments, including the Atlanta Police Department’s evidence department.

[READ: City of Atlanta confirms 'ransomware cyber attack' on network servers]

"They basically told me, no, I'm not getting my property because their computers were hacked," one man told Channel 2's Carl Willis.

The college student, who asked not to be identified, said he was the victim of a crime last December when a robber with a gun confronted him.

He told Willis he was able to fire his own gun and hit the would-be robber in the leg. APD took his gun as evidence.

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But now that the case is over...

"He was convicted two weeks ago, and the court gave me the court order to release my property to me," the man said.

But he was told that couldn't happen because of the recent hack.

Atlanta police were not able to tell Willis how many others were prevented from receiving their property.

[READ: Atlanta City Hall employees told to not turn on computers]

However, in a statement they said: "We still have the ability to return property, and simply ask people to be patient with us as we work to restore key databases affected by the cyber-attack."

"I went there today. I’ve been calling every three days and they keep telling me the same thing," the man said.

Willis asked Atlanta police to look into the matter on Friday. Now, they say the man can come get his gun on Monday with the proper papers.

[READ: Investigation: Red flags raised months before ransomware attack on City Hall]

It’s still unclear how many others may be in a similar situation.

"I'm a law-abiding citizen and a victim of a crime. You need to help,” the man told Willis.

Police said they continue to work closely with the city's information management team to restore full access to all of their data.

They say they have a plan in place to make sure public safety is not impacted.

Cox Media Group

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