A pre-inquest review has opened into the death of a prisoner at Strangeways who may have died after taking spice.
13.09.2022 - 22:25 / manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Benjamin Mendy has been found not guilty of raping a young woman after prosecutors announced they had dropped the charge. The Manchester City defender denied sexually attacking Woman Seven at his Cheshire mansion in July of last year.
Mr Mendy's co-accused, Louis Saha Matturie, 41, was also cleared of two counts of rape and one of sexual assault against the same woman after prosecutors offered no further evidence against the defendants on those four counts. Mr Matturie wiped tears from his eyes as he stood in the dock and the formal not guilty verdicts were delivered by the foreman of the jury at Chester Crown Court.
Judge Steven Everett, Honorary Recorder of Chester, told jurors they 'must not speculate as to why the decision was made'.
He added: "The decision was made and that's it. You must try this case faithfully according to the evidence in relation to the outstanding charges."
Earlier today, jurors were told of a private video of the woman having “enthusiastic sex” with Mr Matturie, when she claimed she had been raped. The mobile phone video was taken by Mr Matturie in August of last year, the court heard, a week after both men had allegedly raped the same woman on the same night the previous weekend at the footballer’s mansion in Prestbury, Cheshire.
The woman had told the jury Mr Matturie sexually assaulted her for a second time at a flat in Salford after clubbing at a nightclub in Manchester on the evening the video was taken. Lisa Wilding KC, defending Mr Matturie, suggested what happened between them was, “consensual, willing and enthusiastic” sex, not rape, Chester Crown Court heard.
But the woman denied this, claiming the incident left her feeling “shamed and disgusted.”
Ms Wilding continued: “When you and
A pre-inquest review has opened into the death of a prisoner at Strangeways who may have died after taking spice.
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