About Hair Owner Convicted of Rape of Harvard Undergrad

The owner of a Cambridge hair salon was convicted today of raping a then 19-year-old Harvard undergraduate and sentenced to seven to 10 years in prison, a Middlesex District Attorney spokesman said.

The undergraduate told police that she was raped by Duncan Purdy, owner of About Hair, a salon and antique store on Arrow Street, in Purdy's salon in March 2004.

In February, Purdy was convicted of running a prostitution ring out of his salon and was sentenced to two years in prison and a $5,000 fine. He will serve his new sentence after these two years are up.

—Anna Tong contributed to the reporting of this story.
—Staff writer Aditi Balakrishna can be reached at balakris@fas.harvard.edu.