UNITED KINGDOM: Benjamin Mendy, a football player for Manchester City, was found not guilty of raping four women and sexually assaulting another at parties held at his mansion in Cheshire while intoxicated.
After a five-month trial at Chester Crown Court, the former French international slouched with his head in his hands as he was unanimously found not guilty of all six counts of rape and one act of sexual assault.
The jury was unable to reach a verdict on the charges of raping one lady and attempting to rape another; therefore, Mendy will now go through a second trial.
Mendy, who appeared to be in tears in the courtroom, was charged with being a “predator” who made pursuing women for sex into a game during parties held at his £4.8 million mansion, some of which took place during COVID lockdowns.
However, he admitted to the jury that all of the women who had accused him of rape had desired to have sex with him. The woman who said he abused her sexually in his kitchen was groped, although he denied doing so.
Mendy expressed his “delight” at the acquittals in a statement released by his attorneys following the verdicts. According to the statement, the football player “looks forward to clearing his name” on the two remaining counts “so he can start rebuilding his life.”
On June 26, two and a half years after his initial arrest, Mendy will stand trial for the two remaining accusations.
The player was the most expensive defender in the world when he joined Manchester City six years ago.
After his arrest on November 11, 2020, he was charged with six counts of sexual assault against six different women, as well as seven charges of rape against four different women.
Louis Saha Matturie, Mendy’s co-defendant and the footballer’s “fixer,” sobbed as he was found not guilty of three counts of rape involving two women.
Six further charges against the 41-year-old, including four counts of alleged rape against three women and two counts of alleged sexual assault against two women, were dismissed by the jury. The week beginning September 18 is when he will stand trial for those allegations.
After approximately 70 hours of deliberation for 14 days, the jury of seven men and four women was exonerated on Friday. The trial had already started when one juror was dismissed.
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