Man is sought in rapes
By Hernán Rozemberg
Eagle-Tribune Writer
Two teen-age runaways from a residential school in Amesbury for youngsters with behavior problems were picked
up, taken to a motel in Peabody and raped, police said.
Francis McNulty of Malden turned himself in to police Friday night and was charged with two counts of rape of a
child and for giving alcohol to minors. Police are looking for a second man, known only as ''Bob,'' in connection with
the assault.
The two girls, 13 and 14, walked away from the Harbor School sometime Thursday.
Peabody Police Detective Robert L. Russell said Mr. McNulty approached the girls on the side of the road in
Amesbury while they were hitchhiking. Introducing himself as ''Fran,'' he offered them a ride in his 1993 Saturn and
then drove south.
After stopping at a package store to buy beer and vodka, Mr. McNulty took the girls to a room at the Country Side
Motel on Route 1 in Peabody. After they went in the room, Mr. McNulty called a friend --described by police only as
''Bob'' --to join them.
While the 14-year-old girl was taking a shower, police said Mr. McNulty threw the other girl on the bed and forced
her to have sex with him and with the other man. The detective said the other girl was raped by Bob after she came
out of the shower.
Police said both girls were drunk when they talked to police officers.
At around 11 p.m. Thursday, the two girls left the motel and headed for Lynn because one of them knew somebody
there. There, one had trouble breathing and was taken to Lynn Union Hospital. Hospital officials called Lynn police.
After talking to the girls and realizing the alleged rapes took place in Peabody, Lynn officers called Peabody police,
who took the girls to the Lahey Clinic in Peabody.
The girls were eventually picked up and taken back to Harbor School by a school official, Detective Russell said.
He said Mr. McNulty, who turned 25 Friday, walked into the Peabody police station on Friday at about 9 p.m. with
lawyer Randy Chapman. A warrant for his arrest had already been issued. He was arrested by Detective Sheila
Davidson and later released on $500 cash bail. He will be arraigned tomorrow morning in Peabody District Court.
Detective Russell said the search continues for ''Bob,'' the other alleged rapist. He is described as a ''very muscular''
6-foot-6 man in his late 20s to early 30s with dark hair and a goatee, driving a new large pickup truck with a red top.
Noting he was aware of the incident, Haverhill Harbor School shift supervisor Joseph Spaulding said he could not
comment and referred a reporter to the school's administrative office in Newbury.
''The only thing we can verify is the girls did leave the school without permission during the day Thursday,'' said Dr.
Arthur DiMauro, executive director of Harbor Schools and Family Services.
He said Harbor Schools provide residential treatment, small group homes and foster homes for youngsters with
behavior problems.
Harbor Schools have locations in Haverhill, Amesbury, Merrimac, Newbury, Newburyport and Salisbury.
''We contract with Harbor Schools,'' said Lorraine Carli, Department of Social Services spokeswoman. ''We put kids
there when, for some reason or another, they're unable to remain in their family setting. By and large, these clients
are placed in the schools through a state agency.''
Detective Russell said Peabody Detective Davidson and Officers Manuel Costa and Patrick Conrad are in charge of
the rape investigation.
