CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A Cleveland police officer on Tuesday made his first court appearance after a grand jury charged him with raping a woman at his home.

Matthew Piter, 26, of Cleveland, pleaded not guilty to rape and gross sexual imposition charges. A Common Pleas Court judge set Piter’s bond at 10 percent of $20,000.

Piter is being represented by attorney Henry Hilow. His case was randomly assigned to Common Pleas Court Judge William T. McGinty, who is Hilow’s former law partner.

Piter has been free on bond since his Oct 31 arrest. He was placed on unpaid leave and will remain on leave until the criminal case is over.

A 29-year-old woman reported that she met Piter through the dating app Tinder. The two went out to dinner at Si Senor Mexican restaurant in Kamm’s Corners, according to police reports.

The duo went back to Piter’s home, police reports say. What happened next is redacted from the police report.

Court records say Piter grabbed the woman with both hands around her neck and slammed her up against the wall. He forcibly groped the woman, pulled down her pants and raped her, court records say.

Piter was hired as a police officer in September 2016 and worked in the Second District.

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