Maintenance Worker Arraigned for Assault

An East Boston man was arraigned in December in Middlesex Superior Court on charges that he sexually assaulted a women he was working with in Holyoke Center, the prosecutor handling the case said yesterday.

According to Assistant District Attorney Greg Pasquale. Jose Cardona was indicted by a grand jury on four counts, including assault with intent to rape and indecent assault and battery.

Pleaded Not Guilty

Pasquale said the charges stemmed from an October 24 incident in which Cardona, who worked for a maintenance company that was hired to clean Holyoke Center, allegedly assaulted his co-worker.

Appearing before Judge Mel Greenberg on December 27, Cardona pleaded not guilty to the charges and was released on $500 bail with orders to stay away from the woman. Greenberg instructed both parties to return January 17 for a pre-trial conference.

Cardona's legal aid attorney, Jose Sanchez, said yesterday that his client will fight the accusations.

"At this point, he denies all of the allegations that have been made by the Commonwealth. Beyond that, we will have no comment," Sanchez said.

Sanchez said Cardona, who immigrated to the U.S. four years ago, quit his job with the Smith Brothers Maintenance Company after the incident and now works at another firm.

Heather McLeod '90, a member of the Coalition Against Rape, said that she was unaware of the incident. "I think it's absolutely disgusting and reprehensible," she said.

McLeod also disparaged Harvard for providing inadequate security for its buildings. In view of this incident and the rape that occurred in the Science Center on December 7, she said "Harvard should take the measures to insure that women will have a working environment free from sexual harassment."

Coalition member Anabella Pitkin '90 said more attention needs to be paid to sexual harassment at Harvard. "What's so interesting about the rape that took place last month is that it was much more publicized. There's a lot more sexual harassment going on at Harvard than we know about," she said.

Harvard Police Department Deputy Chief Jack W. Morse refused to release any information about the incident. Morse said state law prohibits police departments from disclosing information about sensitive crimes, such as sexual assaults.

No one from Harvard Real Estate, which manages Holyoke Center, could be reached for comment yesterday.