Martha’s Vineyard Police Case: Woman “Ran for Her Life,” Found Naked

A security official at an elite Boston school is facing a rape charge after police said they found an Irish woman naked and distressed along the road outside the Massachusetts State Police barracks on Martha’s Vineyard.

Prosecutors told the court during his arraignment that the suspect had been staying at the barracks as a guest of a state trooper who was his college friend.

Edward Brown, 27, pleaded not guilty in connection with the alleged Aug. 15 assault, which prosecutors said occurred inside the barracks.

Authorities said Brown met the woman at The Ritz, a bar in Oak Bluffs, the affluent waterfront community where former President Barack Obama owns a home.

Police received two 911 calls at about 1 a.m. and arrived to find a naked woman in distress. She told investigators that a man had approached her at the bar before she blacked out.

Assistant District Attorney Courtney Scalice offered a graphic account in court, saying the woman told investigators she had been followed around the bar by a Black man wearing a white hat. She later awoke naked and face down, prosecutors said.

The woman said the man held her down as she kicked and screamed. She eventually asked for water, and when he left, she said she “ran for her life” from the building.

She told police that she ran down two flights of stairs and out of the barracks. After she had been on the road for several minutes, a passing motorist stopped to help her.

Oak Bluffs police officers who responded to the scene observed bruising on her legs and a red mark around her neck, Scalice said.

Brown had reportedly been staying at the barracks as a guest of Ryan Costello, a trooper assigned there for the summer. Scalice said investigators identified Brown with assistance from a bouncer at The Ritz, where the woman allegedly encountered him.

The bouncer did not know Brown’s name but knew he associated with state troopers and had a photograph of him. On Aug. 29, two weeks after the alleged assault, Oak Bluffs police sent the image to Costello, Scalice said. Costello identified the man as Brown and told investigators they had been friends since college.

On Sept. 11, Costello’s attorney provided investigators with screenshots of a text exchange between the trooper and Brown, according to Scalice.

“Prior to September 11th, 2026, these messages had never been provided to any member of law enforcement investigating the alleged rape,” Scalice told the court.

Scalice said Brown gave Costello several conflicting accounts of the night. He initially denied bringing a woman to the barracks, then allegedly said she had entered but left by herself. Later, he claimed he had left her in an Uber and that she never went inside.

In one message, Brown allegedly asked Costello, “I’m at the barracks with this chick, is that okay?”

Costello, who prosecutors said was not at the barracks at the time, replied, “okay.” Brown then allegedly asked where he could find condoms and added, “Beers after I slam.”

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Once detectives identified a suspect and obtained a search warrant for Brown’s Uber account, detectives also found a ride from about a half hour before the 911 calls.

“Officers interviewed the Uber driver who confirmed picking up a Black male matching the defendant’s description and a very young looking White female and driving them to the State Police barracks,” Scalice said. “The Uber driver described the female as appearing very intoxicated while the black male was not.”

Brown is listed in jail records as 5 feet, 11 inches tall and 260 pounds. Prosecutors said that they learned from Boston police that he had been the subject of four police reports from two ex-girlfriends claiming he had been harassing them between March and August of this year.

The victim is from Ireland and has returned home. Scalice said she had been swabbed for DNA and that male samples suitable for comparison had been recovered.

Oak Bluffs police, working with the Boston Police Department’s anti-corruption division, arrested Brown at Boston Latin Academy, where he worked in school security, on Oct. 9. Police allegedly found suspected cocaine in his wallet during the arrest.

“The Massachusetts State Police has had no involvement in the Oak Bluffs Police Department’s investigation,” Oak Bluffs Police Chief Jonathan Searle said in a Sept. 10 statement, a month before Brown’s arrest. “As part of its investigation, Oak Bluffs Police developed probable cause and applied for and received court-authorized search warrants related to the investigation, including warrants executed at the State Police barracks.”

A search of the barracks did not recover the victim’s clothes or phone, according to prosecutors.

“These allegations are deeply troubling,” Massachusetts State Police Col. Geoffrey Noble said. “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. I am committed to maintaining the highest standards of safety, security and accountability at all State Police facilities and ensuring that any identified deficiencies are addressed with appropriate corrective action.”

MSP no longer allows guests to stay at police housing on Martha’s Vineyard or Nantucket as a result of this case.

Brown was released on $10,000 cash bail after his arraignment on Oct. 13. Prosecutors had requested $50,000 bail.

The judge ordered him to stay away from the victim and any witnesses. He’s due back in court on Dec. 11.

Twice during the arraignment, Brown attempted to speak, but his attorney and the judge both advised him not to.

“Mr. Brown has entered a plea of not guilty and denies the allegations,” his defense lawyer, Anthony Ellison, told News Media Monday. “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.”

If convicted, he would face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and would have to register as a sex offender.