Police Arrest Third Man in Rape, Prostitution Case

Brookline detectives have arrested a third man in an ongoing investigation involving a special-needs woman forced to have sex with a string of men in exchange for drug money.

Michael Thomas Melville, 53-year-old resident of Brookline public housing, was arrested last Thursday, July 29, and charged with rape. Two other suspects in the case, Lawrence Bloom of Brookline and Raphael Gonzalez of Chelsea, have already been charged with rape, distribution of a Class B substance and deriving support from a prostitute.

Police have released few details about the latest development in the investigation, which is now in its third week. Detective Jennifer Paster confirmed that Melville's arrest was related to the department's case against Gonzalez and Bloom, but would not say whether the victim was the same.

"I can't get into the specifics of it because it is part of the investigation," she said.

Last month, police reported that the 53-year-old Bloom had started inviting a 38-year-old woman with special needs over to his apartment to smoke crack cocaine earlier this year. The victim, who lives in a Brookline group home, reportedly told police that Bloom would often ask her to have sex with him in exchange for drugs.

Then, on June 24, police say Bloom and Gonzalez took the victim to Gonzalez's Chelsea apartment to get "better quality" crack, but instead brought over five to 10 men to have intercourse and oral sex with the victim over the course of the following day. Throughout the ordeal, Gonzalez allegedly kept watch over the woman "to make sure she did everything right," according to Brookline Police Department reports.

It's not clear whether Melville's arrest is directly related to the incident in Chelsea. According to a heavily redacted report filed with Melville's arrest, a woman described only as "the victim" told detectives that she had had sex with Melville "a lot" and that she believed Bloom was jealous of their relationship.

Detective Paster declined to explain the rape charge against Melville, except to say that the crime "met the definition of the rape statute."

According to a police report, Melville and Bloom are neighbors at 90 Longwood Avenue, an affordable housing complex operated by the Brookline Housing Authority.