A man from Boston has been charged with raping a 17-year-old girl at a Keith Urban concert at the Xfinity Center in Mansfield, Massachusetts on Saturday, July 26. The alleged incident occurred at the same concert where 50 people were taken into police custody, with 46 people receiving medical treatment for alcohol-related illnesses. Urban has yet to respond to these new allegations.
The suspect is 18-year-old Sean Murphy, who allegedly led a 17-year-old girl away from her friends and began sexually assaulting her on the Xfinity Center's lawn seating area. The two had reportedly been drinking and had just met each other that night. Nearby audience members allegedly filmed the incident on cell phones and did nothing to stop the assault until an off-duty police officer intervened and arrested Murphy. Police have obtained some of the cell phone videos for evidence in their investigation of the incident.
Murphy, who lives with his parents and has no previous arrest record, pleaded not guilty to the charges on Monday, claiming that the act was consensual. Murphy's lawyer Neil Crowley claims that the police report on the incident makes "no mention of any force." Murphy's bail has been set at $10,000.
"This is really serious," said George Dentino, the selectmen chairman of Mansfield, Massachusetts. "We think very highly of what we do to prevent things like this, and that's obviously a sore spot for every one of us when something like that occurs. Of course, right now, it's only alleged, but these are very serious charges that we're concerned with."
Keith Urban's tour is set to continue on Thursday in Cincinnati, reports Rolling Stone.
