Suspect charged in rape of UH student in campus parking garage refuses to appear in court

ByChaz Miller

Wednesday, February 19, 2025

Suspect charged in rape of UH student refuses to appear in court

After he was mistakenly released from police custody, officials spent a week searching for 40-year-old Eric Brown. A judge set his bond at $15 million total overnight.

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A sexual assault suspect who was mistakenly released from police custody refused to appear in court overnight.

Houston police spent more than a week looking for 40-year-old Eric Brown. He's accused of raping a student on campus at the University of Houston. Now, it appears he won't be getting out of jail anytime soon.

It's uncommon for a suspect to refuse to enter the courtroom for their initial appearance in front of a judge. Despite refusing to appear, his charges were still read.

PREVIOUS REPORT: Sexual assault suspect captured more than a week after UH student raped, police say

Sexual assault suspect Eric Brown was captured more than a week after police say he raped a University of Houston student.

Brown is charged with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon and two counts of aggravated sexual assault. In court overnight, a judge set Brown's bond at $15 million total for all three charges.

The rape of a 21-year-old UH student on the second floor of the Welcome Center Student Parking Garage happened on Feb. 7. According to charging documents, the victim was cleaning her vehicle as she was preparing for a sorority event when Brown came up to her and asked to borrow a pen. That's when Brown reportedly forced his way into her vehicle and raped her at knifepoint, documents said.

Brown was arrested hours after the alleged attack. However, he was quickly released in what's become a game of he-said-she-said between the District Attorney's Office and the UH Police Department.

Two agencies are pointing the finger after a rape suspect at UH wasn't immediately charged at the scene.

UHPD said they wanted charges pressed for Brown's interaction with police, but District Attorney Sean Teare, who spoke at a press conference with UHPD on Tuesday, said there was not sufficient evidence, and he was released.

According to Teare, the UHPD officers focused on an assaulting a peace officer charge and only mentioned the sexual assault as an aside.

Teare added that the officers didn't specifically ask for a sexual assault charge, but Teare admits his staff should still have flagged the case.

UHPD said the DA's office filed charges several days after being alerted about a student being raped in the Student Welcome Center parking garage.

Brown was arrested again on Tuesday after being spotted by a civilian on the METRORail near Shell Energy Stadium.

At Tuesday's press conference, officials said Brown is believed to be homeless and, before his arrest, was spotted using the METRORail and libraries in the area.

Brown is due back in court on Thursday, though it's unclear who will represent him since he didn't give permission to be represented by a public defender.

Documents reveal that Brown has a lengthy history of charges, dating all the way back to 2002. His most recent charge was a misdemeanor assault on a family member in 2018, documents said.

The sexual assault is not the only recent crime on UH's main campus. Within the past few weeks, two students were robbed of their scooters, and another student was robbed of his cellphone at gunpoint.

"Right now, the criminals think UH is an easy target," a robbery victim told ABC13 as fear is rippling across the University of Houston campus amid a violent crime wave.

Last week, 28-year-old Steven Simon was arrested in connection with the scooter thefts.

So far, no one has been taken into custody for the cellphone robbery.

The university said it has committed to increased police presence and what they call "improved coordination" for holding suspects accountable.

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