False Rape Allegation - Client Found Not Guilty

Case study summary

Our client was a young professional. He was accused of rape by a former partner which was evidenced by messages of apology. It took years to bring the case to trial, meaning his life was on hold. Our specialist lawyers worked tirelessly to ensure the client was found Not Guilty

Case study

Our client was a Nigerian national who was in the UK on a work visa. He was an expert data scientist who was very close to getting indefinite leave to remain. Just before his application was processed by the Home Office he was charged with Rape under section 1 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 some five years after he had been reported by an ex-partner.

He knew that the charge was so serious he would end up with a lengthy prison sentence if convicted and would almost certainly be deported back to Nigeria. He stood to lose everything he had worked so hard for. He found the allegation so traumatic he refused to tell his family for fear of the shame and stigma this might bring on them. Thankfully he didn’t wait long before he picked up the phone and called one of our specialist sexual offences lawyers in London.

We listened to his story and immediately knew that something didn’t add up with the complainant’s story. His ex-partner had spent the night at his flat where they had had consensual sex, both with and without contraception. It wasn’t uncommon for them to have sex multiple times in one night. On this particular evening, they had sex for a second time, shortly after the first occasion, again without contraception. Only this time her demeanour changed and she asked him to stop, which he did.

The allegation that he had raped her didn’t surface until sometime later in a text message exchange after she had been chatting over text to a friend who told her she should confront him. In absolute shock and fear, our client began apologising for something he hadn't done. Just hearing the word rape sent him into a spiral of panic. These messages were used by the police and CPS to charge our client.

At trial, our expert barrister cross-examined the complainant and exposed gaping holes in her story. We had prepared our client’s case in great detail and made sure he was ready to present his case to the jury. It showed and they understood that his apologies were not what the police believed them to be. The jury took just 45 minutes to find him Not Guilty.

Following the result, he was able to get his leave to remain in the UK and continue to build a career he had worked so hard for.