A Massachusetts man is accused of tricking his ex-girlfriend into taking medication to end her pregnancy by surreptitiously giving her abortion pills.
Robert Kawada, 43, of Brookline, allegedly gave the victim abortion medication while telling her she was taking iron pills and other vitamins, Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and Watertown Chief of Police Justin Hanrahan said in a joint statement late on Monday.
Kawada and the victim, who has not been named, met on a dating app and dated for a few months, according to Watertown Police.
After the two broke up, the victim told Kawada she was pregnant, police said. That’s when Kawada allegedly obtained pills, one of which is believed to be misoprostol, and gave them to her.
She later suffered a miscarriage, police said.
Besides lying to her about what medication she was taking, Kawada “would also check the victim’s mouth by pulling on the victim’s cheek to make sure she had consumed the pills,” prosecutor Jacob McCrindle said at the arraignment Tuesday, local television station WBZ reported.
He also allegedly gave the victim raspberry leaf cookies, which are often used “to soften a woman’s cervix and start labor,” police said in an affidavit, according to NBC Boston. “It is therefore considered potentially dangerous in the first trimester [of pregnancy] as it could cause a miscarriage.”
Kawada was charged with poisoning, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon on a pregnant person and assault and battery on a household or family member.
He was arraigned in Waltham District Court on Tuesday afternoon when he pleaded not guilty to the charges. He was ordered held on $100,000 bail, which he’s expected to pay.
Kawada is expected back in court on July 23.
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