A Brooklyn judge dismisses charges against five teenagers accused of raping an 18-year-old woman at a playground in Brownsville, a neighborhood where the crime rate has been high for a long time.The five teenagers, Denzel Murray, 14, Ethan Philips, 15, Shaquell Cooper, 15, Travis Beckford, 17, and Onandi Brown, 18 where arrested a few days after the encounter that happened the night of Jan 7. The case became puzzling after some suspects told investigators that the sexual contact was consensual and that when the five teenagers first pulled up to the playground the 18 year old woman was having sex with a man who turned out to be her father.
Prosecutors indicated they were proceeding with particular caution and did not indict the defendants within six days of their arrests, as would have been needed to continue detaining the men on first-degree rape charges.
Four of the teenagers were released on bail, and the fifth one was held on an unrelated charge. Supposedly, when the five teenagers pulled up to the scene they held a gun to the fathers head to make him run away and then proceeded with the sex acts. But, when the father and daughter where interviewed by the prosecutor’s office they found that they had provided different statements about the entire encounter. Which lead to, Judge T. Hecht to dismiss the charges and sealed the records in the case.
Authorities have found more information on the 18 year-old’s agitated history in foster care.
Adopted at 2, she had been in New York City only since July after reuniting with her father.
This is a very troubling and hard solving case, from the initial allegations to the truth of the encounter. Unfortunately, its a bunch of he said she said, so its hard to find hardcore evidence to point fingers on anyone. Not only was there a lot of inconsistency in the case but one of the lawyers who represented Mr.Murray, pointed out that the five teenagers where being victims of racial bias, since they are all black.
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