Footballer Ched Evans found ‘not guilty’ of rape

Footballer's retrial sees him cleared of raping a woman in 2011

Ched Evans

by Closer |
Published on

Footballer Ched Evans has been found not guilty of raping a 19-year-old woman in a hotel room in 2011.

Having been accused of attacking the woman at a Premier Inn in Rhuddlan, Denbighshire in May 2011 after a night of drunkeness, the footballer was found guilty of rape at Caernarfon Crown Court the following year.

However, Mr Evans’ conviction was quashed in April and this afternoon he has been found not guilty in a retrial of the same charge at Cardiff Crown Court.

Mr Evans, who has played for Manchester City, Sheffield United and Wales, had always insisted he and his friend and fellow footballer Clayton McDonald had consensual sex with the woman.

Ched Evans

A jury of seven women and five men took around two hours to clear him following the two-week-long trial.

In a statement read out on Mr Evans's behalf after the verdict, the footballer said: "In the early hours of 30 May 2011, an incident occurred in north Wales that was to change my life and the lives of others forever. That incident did not involve the commission of a criminal offence and today I am overwhelmed with relief that the jury agreed.

"I would like to thank my legal team... for their tireless efforts upon my behalf.

"Thanks go, too, to my friends and family; most notably my fiancee, Natasha [Massey], who chose, perhaps incredibly, to support me in my darkest hour.

"Whilst my innocence has now been established, I wish to make it clear that I wholeheartedly apologise to anyone who might have been affected by the events of the night in question."

The prosecution had alleged the woman did "not have the freedom or capacity to consent".

Also adding that Mr Evans treated her with a "callous, self-centred indifference essentially indistinguishable from utter contempt".

What do you think of the outcome? Let us know your thoughts over on Facebook and Twitter (@CloserOnline).

Just so you know, whilst we may receive a commission or other compensation from the links on this website, we never allow this to influence product selections - read why you should trust us