Edward Brown pleads not guilty to rape at Martha’s Vineyard police barracks

Edward Brown, a 27-year-old security official at a Boston school, has pleaded not guilty to the alleged rape of an Irish woman at the Massachusetts State Police barracks in Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard.

Prosecutors state the incident occurred on August 15. The victim reported meeting the suspect at The Ritz, a local bar, before losing consciousness. She told investigators she woke up naked and face down, and that the man restrained her while she struggled. The woman stated she “ran for her life” by fleeing down two flights of stairs and out of the barracks, where she was eventually found by a passerby.

According to court proceedings, Brown was staying at the barracks as a guest of Ryan Costello, a state trooper and college friend. Investigators identified Brown after a bouncer from the bar provided a photo to the trooper, who then identified him. Prosecutors noted that text messages between the trooper and Brown were not provided to law enforcement until September 11.