CHELSEA, MASS. (WHDH) - A member of the Chelsea School Committee is behind bars after being arraigned on several charges stemming from the rape of a 12-year-old boy, officials said.
Henry Wilson, 56, was arraigned Tuesday in Chelsea Superior Court on charges including aggravated rape of a child with a 10-year age difference and enticing a child under the age of 16, court documents indicate.
Wilson was having an “inappropriate relationship” with a student who was enrolled in the Chelsea Public Schools system, Chelsea Superintendent Almi Guajardo Abeyta said in a statement.
The victim told investigators that he was walking in the area of Broadway on June 28, 2021, when Wilson offered him a ride, drove him to a parking lot, and sexually assaulted him in the car, according to the Suffolk District Attorney’s Office. Parts of the assault were said to be captured on video.
Prosecutors say the victim’s family reported the alleged crime on July 2, prompting an investigation into Wilson.
Wilson allegedly admitted to inappropriately touching the victim in the parking lot and was taken into custody on Monday, prosecutors added.
Wilson also served as a mentor in the school system.
The school system is said to be cooperating with the district attorney’s office and the Chelsea Police Department.
Wilson has since been ordered to stay away from and have no contact with the victim and the victim’s family, stay away from the victim’s home, have no unsupervised contact with children under 18, hold no employment or volunteer work serving children, remain in Massachusetts, be subject to GPS monitoring, and surrender his passport.
A judge set his bail at $50,000. He is due back in court on Sept. 9.
An investigation remains ongoing.
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