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Ex-Manchester City defender, Benjamin Mendy, has today been cleared of rape and attempted rape against two defendants at Chester Crown Court. The verdict comes six months after the 28-year-old was also cleared of six rapes at an earlier trial in January.
The full-back, who is currently without a club after being released by Manchester City last month, was accused of carrying out two separate sex attacks on two women at his home in Manchester. After a gruelling three-week trial, the jury took just three hours to deliberate on the verdict before returning to the courtroom to deliver their “not guilty” verdicts on both counts.
Upon hearing the verdict, Mendy reportedly broke down in tears in the dock and said “Praise Be to God” after maintaining his innocence throughout. He had been accused of raping a 24-year-old woman at his home in October 2020 and attempting to rape a 29-year-old woman in the same home two years prior.
Now he has been cleared of these two charges, which had been carried over from the original trial in January due to the jury not being able to come to a decision, Mendy has now cleared his name entirely and could look to make a return to football. In total, he had been accused by six separate women of seven counts of rape, one count of attempted rape and one count of sexual assault.
🚨🚨 Benjamin Mendy is found NOT GUILTY of rape and attempted rape. ❌
Earlier this year, he had already been found not guilty on six counts of rape and one of sexual assault.
The jury, which had failed to agree on the two remaining charges, finally ruled and found him not… pic.twitter.com/U6ZMhsmZ6U
— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) July 14, 2023
Mendy thanks the jury
After the trial, Mendy declined to make a statement to reporters, however, one of his legal representatives, Jenny Wiltshire, said the following to the press outside Chester Crown Court:
“Benjamin Mendy would like to thank the members of the jury for focussing on the evidence in this trial, rather than on the rumour and innuendo that have followed this case from the outset. This is the second time that Mr. Mendy has been tried and found not guilty by a jury. He is delighted that both juries reached the correct verdicts.
“It has been almost three years since the police started investigating this matter. Mr Mendy has tried to remain strong but the process has, inevitably had a serious impact on him. He thanks everyone who has supported him throughout this ordeal and now asks for privacy so he can begin rebuilding his life.”
What now for Mendy?
When Mendy first arrived in England back in 2017, big things were expected of him after Manchester City had paid Monaco more than £50m for his services. The left-back was meant to be one of the final pieces in Pep Guardiola’s puzzle and although he went on to win a plethora of trophies in Manchester, he rarely impressed for a long period of time.
After Mendy was arrested in 2021, the club suspended him with immediate effect and he hasn’t kicked a ball in a competitive match since a match against Tottenham at the start of the 2021/22 season. Now he has been cleared, however, the defender will be keen to get his career back on track.
There is expected to be some interest in the Frenchman from overseas clubs, however, it is unlikely that we will ever see him play in the Premier League again.
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