A security official at a prominent Boston school has pleaded not guilty to raping a woman visiting from Ireland in an incident that unfolded inside the Massachusetts State Police barracks in Oak Bluffs, prosecutors said.
Edward Brown, 27, entered his not guilty plea at arraignment in connection with the alleged Aug. 15 assault. Prosecutors say Brown was staying at the barracks as a guest of a trooper he knew from college, identified in court as Ryan Costello, who was assigned there for the summer.
According to Assistant District Attorney Courtney Scalice, Brown met the victim at The Ritz, a bar in Oak Bluffs near the home of former President Barack Obama. Police received two 911 calls around 1 a.m. and arrived to find a woman naked and in distress on the side of the road outside the barracks.
The victim told investigators she had been followed around the bar by a Black man in a white hat before blacking out and waking up face down and naked. She said he held her down as she kicked and screamed, and that she eventually asked for water. When he left the room, she said she “ran for her life,” fleeing down two flights of stairs and out of the building before someone stopped to help her on the road.
Responding Oak Bluffs police officers noted bruises on her legs and a red mark on her neck, Scalice told the court.
How investigators identified a suspect
Prosecutors said police located Brown with help from a bouncer at The Ritz, who did not know his name but had a photo and knew he was friendly with state troopers. Oak Bluffs police sent that photo to Costello on Aug. 29 — two weeks after the alleged assault — and Costello identified the man as Brown, a friend since college.
On Sept. 11, Costello’s attorney turned over screenshots of text messages between the trooper and Brown. “Prior to September 11th, 2026, these messages had never been provided to any member of law enforcement investigating the alleged rape,” Scalice said.
According to prosecutors, Brown gave Costello shifting accounts of the night — first denying he brought a woman to the barracks, then saying she had come inside but left on her own, then claiming he’d left her in the Uber and she never entered. Texts allegedly show Brown asking Costello, “I’m at the barracks with this chick, is that okay?” to which Costello, who prosecutors said was not present, replied “okay.” Brown then allegedly asked where to find condoms and added, “Beers after I slam.”
A search warrant for Brown’s Uber account turned up a ride roughly 30 minutes before the 911 calls. The driver told police he had picked up a Black male matching Brown’s description along with a “very young looking” white woman who appeared heavily intoxicated, while the man did not, and dropped them at the barracks.
Prior complaints and evidence gaps
Prosecutors said Boston police had received four reports from two ex-girlfriends between March and August of this year alleging Brown had harassed them. The victim, who has since returned to Ireland, was swabbed for DNA, and investigators recovered male samples suitable for comparison. A search of the barracks did not turn up the victim’s clothes or phone.
Brown is listed in jail records at 5 feet 11 inches and 260 pounds. He worked in security at Boston Latin Academy and was arrested there Oct. 9 by Oak Bluffs police working with the Boston Police Department’s anti-corruption division. Police reported finding suspected cocaine in his wallet during the arrest.
State police response
Oak Bluffs Police Chief Jonathan Searle said in a Sept. 10 statement, issued a month before Brown’s arrest, that his department ran the investigation independently. “The Massachusetts State Police has had no involvement in the Oak Bluffs Police Department’s investigation,” Searle said, adding that his department obtained court-authorized search warrants, including ones executed at the State Police barracks.
“These allegations are deeply troubling,” said Massachusetts State Police Col. Geoffrey Noble. “The Massachusetts State Police are fully cooperating with the ongoing criminal investigation and conducting an internal review of applicable policies, visitor authorization procedures and compliance with established requirements.”
State police have since barred guests from staying at department housing on Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket as a result of the case.
Brown was released on $10,000 cash bail after prosecutors had sought $50,000. He is barred from contacting the victim or witnesses and is due back in court Dec. 11. He faces up to 20 years in prison and sex offender registration if convicted.
Twice during the arraignment, Brown attempted to speak but was advised against it by both his attorney and the judge. “Mr. Brown has entered a plea of not guilty and denies the allegations,” his attorney, Anthony Ellison, said. “He maintains full faith in the legal process and looks forward to presenting his case in court. A zealous defense will be mounted on his behalf, as there are always two sides to every story.”
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