Benjamin Mendy’s retrial will begin at Chester Crown Court on Monday, June 26.
The Manchester City and France defender denies one count of rape and one count of attempted rape against two complainants.
Mendy, 28, was found not guilty of eight other counts — six of rape and one of sexual assault — in January, but the jury, who deliberated for 67 hours and 17 minutes, could not reach a verdict on the two outstanding allegations.
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Mendy was on trial with his co-accused, Louis Saha Matturie, who was charged with eight counts of rape and four counts of sexual assault, relating to eight women, between July 2012 and August 2021.
Matturie — Mendy’s personal assistant — denied all charges and was found not guilty of five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, but the jurors failed to reach verdicts on three further counts of rape and three counts of sexual assault. He is also facing a retrial on those counts.
Why is Mendy back in court?
The jury in the previous trial were unable to reach a verdict on one count of attempted rape and one of rape concerning two different women.
Once the verdicts were delivered in January, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) immediately made clear its intention to proceed with a retrial on the two outstanding counts.
What was Mendy originally charged with?
Mendy initially stood accused of eight counts of rape, one of attempted rape and one sexual assault relating to seven women, between October 2018 and August 2021.
Mendy was remanded in custody and spent 134 days in jail, initially at HMP Altcourse in Liverpool and then at HMP Manchester before being released on bail in January 2022.
Under UK law, all victims of sexual offences are automatically guaranteed anonymity for life from the moment they make an allegation.
What happened in the initial trial?
It started in August and lasted until mid-January, with the jury being sent out to consider their verdicts on December 5.
The trial included a combination of live testimony in court from some of the complainants, while others opted to have their cross-examination pre-recorded at an earlier date.
Mendy gave evidence, where he strenuously denied the allegations levelled at him but admitted to drink-driving and continuing to host parties throughout the Covid-19 pandemic when the country was locked down.
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Mendy did not dispute claims that he had been fined £200,000 by Manchester City for hosting lockdown parties. It also emerged that City withdrew his pay, believed to have been over £100,000 a week, in September 2021.
A significant moment came on November 14, when the Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola, appeared in Courtroom One at Chester Crown Court via video link and told the jury that the France international is a “really good boy” and “so generous”, adding that he did not know what Mendy did in his private life as he is “not his father”.
In her closing speech before the jury were sent to deliberate their verdicts, Eleanor Laws KC, who defended Mendy, said her client’s “life as he knew it is over” and he “will never escape these accusations” before telling the jury to “look up Ched Evans”.
One juror was dismissed due to illness on December 19. On January 12, 37 days after they were first sent out, Judge Everett gave his majority instruction to the jury and asked for any verdicts — 10 verdicts, all unanimous, were delivered a few minutes before 11am.
Seven related to Mendy and three to Matturie, all not guilty.
Why has there been a six-month waiting time?
After the trial ended in January, it was agreed a retrial would take place.
The defence initially suggested June 26 as a start date. Judge Everett quickly agreed that was feasible and suited his calendar in terms of other trials he was scheduled to be involved in.
What did Mendy say?
After the not-guilty verdicts were read out and a subsequent retrial ordered, Mendy did not make any comment.
His solicitor, Jenny Wiltshire from Hickman & Rose, however, released the following statement:
“My client Benjamin Mendy would like to thank the members of the jury for their dedication and commitment.
“He also thanks everyone who supported him, and particularly the witnesses who gave evidence on his behalf in the glare of such intense publicity.
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“Mr Mendy is delighted that he has been unanimously acquitted of eight of the 10 charges he faced.
“He looks forward to clearing his name in relation to the other two charges so he can start rebuilding his life.”
Is he still a Manchester City player?
Technically, yes — but not for much longer.
His contract expires on June 30 and Manchester City have confirmed he will be released.
Mendy’s last appearance for the treble winners was in a 1-0 loss away to Tottenham Hotspur on August 15, 2021. He also played in the club’s Community Shield defeat by Leicester City at Wembley a week earlier.
He joined City from French club Monaco in a deal worth £52million ($66.1m) and played 75 times in all competitions for them.
On January 13, City released the following statement: “Manchester City FC notes the verdict from Chester Crown Court today, where a jury has found Benjamin Mendy not guilty of seven charges.
“The jury is hung on two charges and the trial is now over. Given there are open matters related to this case, the club is not in a position to comment further at this time.”
How long is the trial expected to last?
Judge Everett agreed to split the trials, meaning Mendy and Matturie will be in court on different dates.
When confirming Mendy’s June 26 start date, Judge Everett said he expects it to last between two and three weeks.
Matturie’s retrial is slated to begin at Chester Crown Court in September.
(Top photo: Lindsey Parnaby/AFP/Getty Insges)
Dan Sheldon is a football news reporter for The Athletic, covering Manchester City and Manchester United. He spent four years writing about Southampton FC, two of which were at the Southern Daily Echo. Follow Dan on Twitter @dansheldonsport
