Dorchester man accused of assaulting Arlington teen he met online

ARLINGTON, Mass. (MyFoxBoston.com) -- Arlington Police arrested a Dorchester man Thursday in connection to the assault of a 15-year-old Arlington middle school student.

Jose Alexis Rodriguez Laboy, 35, of Dorchester is accused of luring a teenage girl out of her computer class at an Arlington Middle School and then assaulting her. Rodriguez Laboy is a married father of four, and works as an auto mechanic. He hid his face from view in Cambridge District Court Friday, where he pleaded not guilty to child enticement and indecent assault and battery charges.

According to prosecutors, while on an instant messaging program, he convinced the girl to leave a computer class at the Ottoson Middle School in Arlington and meet him outside.

"At about 10:20 in the morning, while she was still at the computer, she requested to take a break," said prosecutor Larry Perchick. "He had actually come by her school, picked her up at the school after having seen her emerge from that building, at which time she asked him to give her a ride to Boston."

When the teen didn't return to class after 10 minutes, the school began looking for her.

"When they looked at the computer she had been seated at, they learned she had been communicating via the instant messaging program," said Perchick. " The screen name of the person she appeared to be communicating with, the alias used online, was Jose R," he said.

The girl just wanted a ride to Boston,  prosecutors said, but Rodriguez Laboy wanted sex. They say he groped her, tried to kiss her, but eventually let her use his phone twice and drove her back to the school.

She was back by 11 a.m., gone a total of 40 minutes.

Prosecutors say the girl actually first started talking with Rodriguez Laboy in an Internet chat room sometime 24 hours before the incident.

Police tracked him down with the help of his online profile, and her description of him and his minivan.

Rodriguez Laboy's lawyer tells us he doesn't believe this rose to the level of a sexual attack.

His lawyer, Henry Fasoldt, said he has no prior criminal record, other than a charge of operating after suspension from 12 years ago. Fasoldt told reporters it's "just an allegation right now."

"He's entitled to be presumed innocent that hasn't been proven yet. It's only been alleged," he said.

Rodriguez-Laboy is being held on $100,000 cash bail.

Fox25 reached out to the school superintendent for comment, but never heard back.

Cox Media Group