COSMO'S MOST-ELIGIBLE BACHELOR IS CHARGED WITH RAPE

WORCESTER, Mass. -- A man who was pronounced one of America's most
eligible bachelors by Cosmopolitan magazine was charged with drugging
a woman and raping her.

Ryan Martin, a 22-year-old model and former nightclub manager who
lives with his mother, is accused of giving the woman a green liquid
he said was a drink, then attacking her after she fell unconscious at
his home.

He pleaded innocent Thursday and was released on $20,000 bail. He
could get life in prison.

Martin was featured in Cosmopolitan's summer special issue ``All About
Men.'' In an article titled ``America's Most Wanted (Men. That Is),''
the magazine profiled a bachelor from each state and the District of
Columbia.

As the bachelor from Massachusetts, Martin was quoted as saying his
first-date ``turn on'' was ``a really sweet smile and a nice kiss
goodnight.''

``His position is that he didn't force, deceive or use trickery in
getting anybody to take any illegal drugs,'' said his lawyer, Anthony
Salerno. ``He denied that there was any forced sexual
relationship.''

Police said the 23-year-old victim and another woman met Martin at one
bar, then went to a bar where he worked, Sir Morgan's Cove. The three
were allowed in after closing time.

Martin served alcohol to the two women, then gave them each a small
plastic cup containing a green liquid he said was something from a
nutrition store, police said.

Both women soon became sleepy and unable to drive. They agreed to stay
at Martin's home until they felt better, police said. The next
morning, one woman awoke and believed she might have been sexually
assaulted.

The state police crime laboratory concluded the victim's blood
contained gamma-hydroxybutyrate, a powerful depressant used in
numerous sexual assaults across the country.

In a June story in the Telegram & Gazette of Worcester, Martin said he
had been nominated for the Cosmo story by his mother.

Paul Luthringer, a spokesman for Hearst Magazines, the publisher of
Cosmo, said Martin was chosen from hundreds of candidates.

``Each candidate was interviewed over the telephone by an editor to
gauge their disposition -- to make sure they matched the kind of
people that we want to appear in the magazine,'' he said.

Checked-by: Patrick Henry