High School Rape Suspects To Be Arraigned Tuesday

Three Somerville High School soccer players who have been accused of raping three high school freshmen at a sports camp were scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday, according to media reports.

One of the accused students, Somerville High School 11th-Grader Galileo Mondol, 17, was held on $100,000 cash or $1 million surety bail and was scheduled to be arraigned in Central Berkshire District Court, according to iberkshires.com. The other two defendants, also juniors at the high school, are under 17 and considered juveniles. They will be arraigned in Berkshire Juvenile Court, the news website said.

Local media outlets have reported some more information about the alleged rapes since the city of Somerville on Friday made the allegations public.

BostonHerald.com reported the three 9th-grade victims were male.

Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone, speaking to reporters on Friday, said, "These allegations go far beyond hazing. This is rape," according to WHDH.

The alleged sexual assaults took place on Aug. 25 at Camp Lenox, in Otis in Western Massachusetts, where Somerville has held an annual sports team-building camp since 1998, according to BostonHerald.com. The accused students allegedly entered a cabin where the freshmen were staying and committed the sexual assaults.

The Boston Herald, along with several other news organizations, reported there were 161 students at the camp, with 19 chaperones.

Later, however, BostonHerald.com reported there were 165 students at the camp—61 boy soccer players, 42 girl soccer players and 62 football players—and 24 adult chaperones. WHDH reported there was a chaperone in every cabin.

One of the adults at the camp was Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone, according to WCVB. The mayor is an assistant coach with the Somerville High School football team.

Curtatone told the TV station the camp is meant to be a safe setting for students. "It's hard to look a parent in the face and say, we let you down," he said.

WCVB reported all three accused students have been suspended from the high school indefinitely.

A lawyer for Mondol has emphatically maintained his client is not guilty.

According to the Berkshire Eagle, William Korman, Mondol's attorney, said, "His family supports him 100 percent. He is a 17-year-old kid—he's just turned 17 a month ago—he's never been in trouble before."

"These allegations are absolutely shocking," Korman continued, "and I'm confident that when this case finally comes to trial, he's going to be exonerated of any and all charges and any and all allegations."

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