HUPD Makes Arrest for Rape

Harvard police arrested a Graduate School of Education (GSE) student in his dormitory Wednesday night for an alleged rape.

Giorgi Zedginidze, age 35, has been charged with two counts of rape and two counts of indecent assault and battery to a person over the age of 14.

Seth Horowitz, spokesperson for the Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office, said the alleged rape was not a random act.

“The defendant and victim were known to each other,” Horowitz said.

However, he would provide no more specifics on the relationship between Zedginidze and the alleged victim. Because the charges involve sexual assault, court records in this case are not public.

Zedginidze, whose bail was set at $10,000, pled not guilty at his arraignment hearing yesterday, Horowitz said.

The Harvard University Police Department (HUPD) arrested Zedginidze after receiving a call at 10:11 p.m. Wednesday night, according to HUPD spokesperson Steven G. Catalano.

Following an investigation at the scene, police arrested Zedginidze in Child Hall—a Harvard-owned residence hall located at 26 Everett St. Zedginidze lives in Child Hall.

One resident on Zedginidze’s floor said she watched television with Zedginidze and two others in the floor’s lounge Wednesday night from approximately 9 to 11 p.m. She said Zedginidze frequently traveled “in and out” of the area during that time, and that she noticed nothing unusual about his behavior.

Several Child Hall residents said they saw police in the dormitory Wednesday night, but were not aware of the charges against Zedginidze.

Asmus Rotne, Zedginidze’s resident adviser, declined to comment last night.

GSE spokesperson Christine Sanni said that the school was aware of the charges but administrators have not yet taken disciplinary action against Zedginidze.

“At this point the dean’s office hasn’t made any decisions,” she said.

Zedginidze’s probable cause hearing is set for Feb. 15.

According to statistics provided by the Harvard police, seven on-campus forcible sex offenses were formally reported to the department in 2000—the most recent year for which data is available. Five of these occurred in campus housing.

—Staff writer Jenifer L. Steinhardt can be reached at steinhar@fas.harvard.edu.