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Lawrence man accused in teen rape
Defendant, 21, also charged with separate assault of a woman in May
Angel Mateo (center) stood for his arraignment in Lawrence District Court on Friday. His attorney, Ron Ranta, is at left. (Patrick Whittemore/Pool)
By Dylan McGuinness
Globe Correspondent

LAWRENCE — She sat trembling in the emergency room, with a blanket draped over her shoulders, looking at the pictures of suspects a Lawrence police officer handed her.

No, the victim said, the first picture wasn’t him, according to a police report. The officer showed her a photograph of a different man.

“That’s him,’’ the 13-year-old girl told the officer, who wrote in the report that he saw her eyes well with tears. “I remember when he grabbed me. His face . . . that’s him.’’

On Thursday, Lawrence police charged 21-year-old Angel Mateo with grabbing the girl as she walked to South Lawrence East Middle School, pulling her inside his apartment and raping her for more than two hours. He then allegedly gave her $20 in cash and returned her phone to her.

In their report, police said “Mateo provided no plausible reason as to why he possessed the [victim’s] phone.’’

Mateo appeared in Lawrence District Court on Friday with his head down as he was arraigned on charges of aggravated statutory rape and kidnapping in connection with the attack on the teen. He was wearing a GPS bracelet he has been required to wear since he was released on separate charges in April.

In addition, he was charged in court Friday in an assault on another woman in May.

After media reports of his arrest Thursday night, a 27-year-old woman contacted police and identified Mateo as the man who had allegedly assaulted her on May 28, prosecutors said in court.

He was charged in court Friday with assault with intent to rape and assault and battery in that case as well.

Mateo pleaded not guilty to all charges. He was ordered held without bail pending a pretrial conference on Nov. 8, and his personal recognizance in the April case was revoked.

In the April case, Mateo was charged with extortion, threatening, and distribution of obscene material for allegedly trying to leverage nude photographs of his ex-girlfriend to force her to have sex with him, according to an earlier police report.

He was released with the requirement that he wear the monitoring bracelet.

Mateo told police after his arrest Thursday that he had been in contact with the 13-year-old through social media and thought she was 18. He claimed the girl had agreed to meet with him and that their actions were consensual. The teen was not identified because she is a minor.

The 27-year-old told police she had gone out with friends the night of May 28 and was parking her car near her apartment when a man approached, according to the police report. He began talking to her and tried to kiss her. When she resisted, he allegedly put her in a headlock, dragged her up the street, and punched her in the face before she could run away.

In a press conference outside police headquarters Friday afternoon, Lawrence Mayor Dan Rivera and Police Chief James Fitzpatrick sought to assure residents that Thursday’s attack on the teen was an isolated incident.

“Our schools are safe, our neighborhoods are safe,’’ Rivera said.

Fitzpatrick said the department would use extra patrols in the area and near schools to try and help students and residents feel safe.

He praised the 13-year-old’s ability to provide police with details and the location of the alleged attack, despite dealing with a “very traumatic experience.’’

According to police, Mateo let the teenager go after the attack and she made her way to her school.

“When at school, [the victim] called her mother,’’ police wrote in their report. “She was crying uncontrollably.’’

The mother picked up her daughter, who described what had happened. The two drove to the apartment building, at the intersection of Phillips and Boxford streets, where authorities said Mateo lives. They later provided a description of the building to police, which led them to the arrest.

The 13-year-old said in her description to police that Mateo was wearing the GPS bracelet on his ankle. The attack on the 27-year-old occurred after his release with the mandate to wear a GPS bracelet as well.

Fitzpatrick said Friday he wasn’t aware of the attack on the 27-year-old and couldn’t comment on whether police checked local GPS trackers when she initially reported it in May.

Rivera said his office would work with police to review the list of people released in Lawrence who were required to wear a GPS tracker and questioned whether Mateo should have been freed in the first place.

Asked if had a legal right to conduct such a review, Rivera said he didn’t know. “But we should,’’ he said.

Dylan McGuinness can be reached at dylan.mcguinness @globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @DylMcGuinness. John R. Ellement can be reached at ellement@globe .com. Follow him on Twitter @JREbosglobe.