French defender Benjamin Mendy has been found not guilty of rape and attempted rape by a jury at Chester Crown Court in England.
The former Manchester City player was accused of raping a 24-year-old woman in a bedroom at his Cheshire home in October 2020.
Mendy was also charged with the attempted rape of a 29-year-old woman who had claimed he molested her at his home two years prior. However, the World Cup winner denied both charges, saying the two meetings were consensual.
On Friday, he was found not guilty by a six-man and six-woman jury at Chester Crown Court after they deliberated for about three hours and 15 minutes.
The former Monaco star had initially been cleared of a number of rape charges (six) in a previous trial earlier this year, but the jury was unable to reach a final verdict on two other counts.
The 28-year-old was clearly emotional and almost broke down in tears as the verdicts that cleared him of the charges were being read out loud by the jury foreman following a three-week trial at Chester Crown Court.
After the hearing, Jenny Wiltshire, Mendy’s solicitor said: “Benjamin Mendy would like to thank the members of the jury for focusing 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.”
“Mr Mendy had tried to remain strong but the process had inevitably had a serious impact on him.
“He now wanted to ask for his privacy to be respected “so he can begin rebuilding his life,” Ms Wiltshire added.
Mendy, whose contract with Manchester City expired this June, was first arrested in November 2020 and was suspended by the Pep Guardiola-led team in August 2021 after he was charged with rape.
He only played two games for the Cityzens since the 2021–22 season, one in the Premier League and one in the Community Shield.
His move from Monaco to the Etihad Stadium for £52 million in 2017 made him the Premier League’s most expensive defender. He went on to win three league titles, two league cups, and a community shield.
