NORTH HAVEN – The chairman of the North Haven Housing Authority is facing sex assault charges after a yearlong investigation.
Ralph Cook, 49, was arraigned in Meriden Superior Court on Wednesday on a charge of sexual assault in the first degree and unlawful restraint.
According to his arrest warrant, Cook hosted a party at his home on Mountain Brook Road in October 2013. A man told police that while attending the party, Cook drugged him and sexually assaulted him over a period of several hours.
Police also interviewed a friend of Cook’s who said that Cook told him the alleged victim asked him for money. According to the friend, when Cook declined, the victim said he would say that Cook raped him.
Investigators collected evidence at Cook’s home that included extensive DNA analysis. According to the warrant, “Ralph Cook could not be eliminated as a contributer to the DNA profile” from the alleged victim’s jeans.
Cook was released on $100,000 bond. He scheduled to appear in court in New Haven on Nov. 25.
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