Boston man charged in connection with groping MBTA bus driver
A Boston man is facing charges in connection with groping an MBTA bus driver late last month, the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office announced Thursday.
Jamaica Plain resident Michael James Vandenbroeke, 41, has pleaded not guilty to indecent assault and battery on a person over 14, assault and battery on a public employee and disorderly conduct on a public conveyance, according to court records. He was arraigned Thursday in Boston Municipal Court-Central.
On March 26, an MBTA bus driver reported to police that a man she did not know had sexually assaulted her after getting on her bus at the Massachusetts Avenue and Washington Street Silver Line stop late that morning, prosecutors said. The victim said the assault happened as the man went to hand her a perfume bottle she'd dropped.
As the man was reaching out to give her the bottle, he grabbed her face and poked her in the eye, then groped her breast, prosecutors said. She immediately moved the man's hand away and yelled at him. The man then sat down at the back of the bus and got off a few stops later.
Investigators reviewed security footage from the bus, which had recorded the assault, prosecutors said. They then shared still images of the man with the public.
On March 30, investigators identified the man as Vandenbroeke and arrested him at Nubian Square Station, prosecutors said. He has multiple convictions for violent offenses dating back to 2005.
During Vandenbroeke's arraignment, the judge ordered him held on $500 bail and to stay away from the victim and witnesses in the case, according to court records. He is due back in court for a pretrial hearing on April 21.
"The women and men who operate MBTA buses and trains are instrumental in transporting our workers, consumers, visitors and students throughout the metro Boston area day in and day out, and they deserve our praise and our gratitude," Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden said in the press release. "An incident like this is an intolerable affront on them and on everyone who uses public transportation."
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