Manchester City footballer Benjamin Mendy has been found not guilty of rape at the direction of a judge at his trial.
Mendy, 28, was cleared of raping a 19-year-old woman last July at Chester Crown Court.
His co-defendant, Louis Saha Matturie, 41, was also found not guilty at the judge’s direction of two counts of rape and one count of sexual assault against the same woman.
Judge Stephen Everett ordered the jury to clear the defendants on those charges after the prosecution presented no further evidence.
Mendy still faces seven counts of rape, one count of attempted rape and one count of sexual assault – charges he denies.
Judge Everett warned the jury not to speculate as to why the prosecution decided not to pursue guilty verdicts related to the charges and to continue “faithfully” to try the defendants on other charges that are not being pursued. they still have to face.
The jury was previously told of a private video of the woman with Matturie, where she claimed she had been raped a second time by him.
The court heard Matturie’s 20-minute cell phone video on August 1 last year, a week after both men allegedly raped the woman on the night of the same day at his mansion. a football player in Prestbury, Cheshire.
She has alleged that she woke up to Mendy raping her on that occasion.
Lisa Wilding KC, Matturie’s defense, argued that what happened between them was “consensual” sex, not rape, Chester Crown Court said.
The woman denied this, saying the incident made her feel “embarrassed and disgusted”.
She was asked why the movie was being made, and she said that she had no idea that she was being filmed at the time.
The hearing was then adjourned and when the trial resumed after lunchtime, Timothy Cray KC, the prosecutor, told the court that the prosecution was not currently seeking guilty verdicts on the crime charge. sex involving women.
The trial panel subsequently rendered not guilty verdicts against the defendants.
