Norwalk woman charged with falsely reporting rape

NORWALK -- A woman who accused two men of raping her in April was arrested Monday night and charged with falsely reporting an incident and making a false statement to police.

Brittany Reith, 20, of 7 Commerce St., Norwalk, was released after posting $5,000 bond.

The charges that police filed against Joseph Gay and his cousin, Anthony Lee, were dropped six weeks after the incident when police found a surveillance tape of Reith having a relaxed lunch with one of her alleged attackers on the day she claimed to be abducted and sexually assaulted.

Reith told police on the morning of April 7 that she escaped a Sention Avenue apartment where she had been raped through the night by Gay and Lee, 30, both of Norwalk.

The men were found sleeping in the apartment and charged with various felonies, including rape.

Police said Reith's story began breaking down when they took a closer look at the allegations.

At a May 19 court hearing, Supervisory State's Attorney James Bernardi said police found a videotape of Reith and Gay "enjoying" a half-hour late afternoon meal together at a restaurant on April 6, a few hours after she said she had allegedly been held a gunpoint by the two.

"There was no indication of restraint or any other evidence that normally accompanies an allegation of rape or physical restraint," he told Judge Bruce Hudock before dropping the charges against the men.

A taxi driver who drove Gay and Reith from the restaurant to Bridgeport during the time she said she was being held at gunpoint by Gay and Lee said the two were talking and laughing and "seemed to be getting along very well," Reith's seven-page arrest warrant said.

Bernardi also said police investigators determined Lee was at work for several hours after Reith claimed to have been abducted.

After the court hearing, Gay and Lee expressed relief at having the charges against them dropped and asked that Reith be investigated for making the false claim.

The charges could bring Reith a maximum six years in jail. Falsely reporting an incident is a class D felony with a maximum punishment of up to five years in jail. Making a false statement is a class A misdemeanor with a maximum punishment of up to a year in jail.

Sgt. Marc Lepore, whose detective squad headed the rape investigation, said there were inconsistencies in Reith's story from the beginning.

"Our entire squad worked for over 100 hours and conducted interviews with up to 15 people to eventually disprove the rape allegations," Lepore said.

Staff writer John Nickerson can be reached at john.nickerson@scni.com or 203-964-2320.