Bensalem teen charged with rape, other sex-related crimes at Philadelphia party
A Bensalem teen is accused of raping a teenager at a party in Northeast Philadelphia last month, according to police.
Last week, Zamire Cottrell, 18, was arraigned on charges alleging he sexually assaulted the 16-year-old girl on March 5.
Cottrell, of Knights Road, is charged with rape, unlawful contact with a minor, unlawful restraint, sexual assault and false imprisonment, which are felonies, as well as misdemeanor offenses of corruption of minors, indecent assault, indecent exposure, simple assault and recklessly endangering another person.
The charges against Cottrell, who played football for Conwell-Egan Catholic High School in Bristol Township and is a preferred walk on for Penn State University, are only allegations. He has not been convicted of any crimes.
At some point Thursday night, references to Penn State, where he verbally committed to play last month, were removed from some of Cottrell's social media accounts. University officials said they do nit discuss players who are not officially part of their program nor are they allowed to, per NCAA rules. A verbal recruiting commitment does not make a player a member of the team.
Cottrell posted $150,00 bail and is out of custody. He is due in court April 19 for a preliminary hearing, and has been ordered to stay away from the victim.
Man sentenced in Bensalem incident: Man sentenced to 11 years in prison for shooting, attempted robbery inside Bensalem hotel
Man charged with stealing from company: How an employee allegedly stole $2.4M from Bensalem gaming company
Man charged in overdose death: Bensalem man charged in a Bristol Township woman's overdose death
According to an affidavit of probable cause prepared by the Philadelphia Police Department, Cottrell was with friends at a concert at Tyler State Park, in Bucks County, and was kicked out of the event for drinking, before heading to a friend’s house party off of Wildflower Way in Philadelphia the night of March 4.
While at the party, a female, known as Witness 4, in court documents, was placed in a bedroom, where others say she was intoxicated and had vomited.
Another female, Witness 2, noticed her on a bed there and left the door open to keep watch.
The victim said she had gone into the room to check on Witness 4, and when she entered, Cottrell locked the door, according to court documents. Cottrell then raped the 16 year old while she told him no, she "didn't want to do it," and that he was hurting her, police allege. She tried to push him off but he kept pushing her back down, police said.
When Witness 2 returned to the room later, she noticed the door was closed and locked, according to the affidavit. The witness picked the lock and gained entry; he then slammed the door on her, police reported.
Two females tried to push the door open while Cottrell held the door closed, court documents state. They were able to force the door open and found Cottrell naked from the waist down and the victim passed out over the bed, also naked from the waist down, court documents state.
The victim was later taken to the hospital and given a forensic medical exam. The results are still pending. The victim later spoke to police.
Also on the bed, next to the victim, was Witness 4, police said.
Witness 4 was reportedly passed out on the bed with her pants down but her underwear on. She, too, was taken to a hospital and given a forensic medical exam, the results of which are still pending. She was not identified as a victim in the probable cause affidavit.
"Witness 1 was yelling at the offender to leave, and he was screaming at her that Witness 4 wanted to 'perform oral sex' on him," the affidavit reads.
She called her mother, who arrived at the house and called police. Cottrell left as soon as he heard police were called, authorities said.
"Witness 1 realized the situation had quickly escalated and had spiraled out of control," the affidavit reads.
Detectives were unable to reach him after the alleged incident. His attorney contacted law enforcement and declined to let Cottrell speak to them, according to court documents.
In addition to physical evidence collected, police also say they have social media messages between Cottrell and witness, according to the affidavit.
Cottrell's attorney was not immediately available for comment Thursday afternoon.
Kenneth A. Gavin, spokesman for The Archdiocese of Philadelphia, said Conwell-Egan Catholic High School administration was informed Wednesday night that a student was arrested by Philadelphia police and charged with sexual assault. The school did not name the student.
The incident did not involve any members of the school community, nor did it involve school property or a school event, Gavin's statement read.
The student was indefinitely suspended pending the outcome of the criminal case, and will not be allowed on campus and cannot attend school-related events, Gavin said.
"The safety and protection of the young people entrusted to our care are always our primary concern. We are grateful to law enforcement for alerting us to this situation and will continue to cooperate with them in the course of their work," a statement from him reads in part.
This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Zamire Cottrell charged with raping teen girl in Philadelphia
