Posters in River Dorms Warn of Rape Suspect

Harvard police have posted composite sketches in the River dorms of a rape suspect, hoping to warn students about the alleged assailant and seeking information about his identity.

According to the poster, which was issued by the Metropolitan Police, a woman was raped November 13 at about 8:15 p.m. on the banks of the Charles River near Longfellow Park. The park is located off Brattle St. near the Mt. Auburn Hospital.

The flyer describes the suspect as a white male, 30- to 35-year-old, between 5-ft. 10-in. and 6 ft. tall, having brown hair and weighing about 175 Ibs. The suspect threatened to shoot the victim, but did not show a gun, the poster says.

MDC police Det. Alan R. Keith said neither the victim nor the attacker is believed to be a member of the Harvard community. He described the wide distribution of the warning as a "cautionary" move.

"Harvard students and MIT students and people in that general area have a tendency to be a little more trusting," Keith said. "We don't want anyone else preyed upon," he added.

Keith called the rape "an unusual occurrence," but said that violent crime along the banks of the river is not entirely uncommon. "I don't think we've handled [a rape] in that immediate area for six months or so."

Harvard police Deputy Chief Jack W. Morse said his department is involved in the rape investigation "only to the extent of looking for the person in the flyer."

Morse said there was no special threat to Harvard students. "There's nothing that really pinpoints it to any place of particular concern," Morse said.

Keith said that Harvard police have already alerted MDC police to one man meeting the description of the suspect. That person was placed in protective custody, but "after interview and close inspection, it was determined that he was not involved," he said.