Dublin firefighter pleads not guilty in Boston woman rape case

A Dublin firefighter accused of raping a 28-year-old woman in Boston over St Patrick’s Day weekend appeared before Suffolk Supreme Court and pleaded not guilty.

Terence Crosbie, 37, of Dublin, was arrested at Boston Logan International Airport in March last year as he attempted to fly back to Ireland. He was indicted by a grand jury on rape charges in May.

According to the indictment, Crosbie was with members of the Dublin Fire Department at the St. Patrick’s Day parade in Boston.

The woman told Boston police she was attacked at the iconic Omni Parker House hotel after meeting Crosbie and one of his colleagues at dinner on Thursday, March 14, Assistant District Attorney Erin Murphy told the court.

US media reports and Channel 10 News Boston detailed that the woman told police she returned to the hotel with a man who had been staying in the same room as Crosbie. She said they both fell asleep in separate beds in the room. Crosbie was not there at the time, prosecutors said, but returned to the room several hours later in the early hours of Friday morning.

The court heard that according to records of his hotel key, he entered the room at around 1:55am.

Ms Murphy said: ‘Because the victim was asleep when he returned, she was unaware of his presence until she woke up and saw him in the act of raping her.

“She told him to stop and asked what he was doing and the defendant continued. He did not stop and made comments to the effect that he knew she wanted to do it, that it was pathetic, that his girlfriend had fallen asleep and could not do it and that he would do it for her.”

According to hotel records, the woman packed her things and left the room at around 2:15 a.m. She immediately texted a friend telling her she had been sexually assaulted and then went to the hospital.

The prosecution said that when Crosbie learned of the police investigation, he tried to return to Ireland. He changed his return flight and tried to take an even earlier flight at Logan Airport. He was taken off the plane and arrested.

When questioned by police, Crosbie admitted that he returned to the room during the period in question and that a woman was there when he arrived, but denied having had contact with her. He denied the rape allegations and pleaded not guilty.

Crosbie’s defense attorneys argued that his client was not trying to flee the country, but was simply unsure of what to do if he got into legal trouble in a foreign country during a holiday weekend, and so tried to return home to get help.

The defense attorney pushed for bail of $5,000 (4,593 euros), citing concerns about Crosbie’s financial resources abroad.

Prosecutors asked for bail of $100,000 (€91,868), citing the nature of the charges and Crosbie’s connection to Ireland, citing his attempts to board a plane.

Prosecutors also noted that because of the way Crosbie was removed from a police flight at the last minute, he is now considered an illegal entrant and could face imprisonment if released.

The judge set Crosbie’s bail at $100,000 cash, with conditions that the defendant stay away from and have no direct or indirect contact with the alleged victim, not leave Massachusetts, surrender his passport before his release, and not apply for a new one.