Former Manchester City footballer Benjamin Mendy has been found not guilty at Chester Crown Court of one count of rape and one of attempted rape.
The 28-year-old broke down in tears as the not guilty verdicts were given by the jury foreman following a three-week trial at Chester Crown Court.
He had stood for the verdicts but then sank to his seat with his head on his knees.
Mendy, whose contract with the Premier League champions ended on July 1, was cleared of attempting to rape a woman, aged 29 at the time, at his £4million mansion in Mottram St Andrew, Cheshire in October 2018.
He was also found not guilty of the rape of a second woman, aged 24, two years later also at his home address.
The jury of six men and six women were out for around three hours and 15 minutes before returning their verdicts.
Judge Steven Everett responded: “Mr Mendy can be discharged from the dock.”
Mendy was cleared by a jury earlier this year of six counts of rape and one count of sexual assault following a six-month trial.
Mendy’s lawyer, Jenny Wiltshire, said the footballer was “delighted” by Friday’s verdicts.
She added:”He thanks everyone who has supported him throughout this ordeal and now asks for privacy so he can begin rebuilding his life.”
Mendy was asked by reporters outside…
