Mr. S was seen as a hard-working, bright young man who worked as a medical counter assistant in a pharmacy in London, and was interested in pursuing his career as a pharmacist. At the same time, he was in a serious relationship with Ms. K, and friends and family members alike reported seeing them as a happy couple, in a stable relationship. Unkown to others, the two would have arguments, revolving around previous relationships.
After a particular argument, Ms. K threatened that she would “accuse him of rape”, despite the relationship being entirely consensual. To his surprise, he was arrested a few days later – on charges of rape, actual bodily harm, and threats to kill.
Because of the seriousness of the threats to kill, and rape charges, he was arrested and held in custody immediately, and was denied bail. After contacting us, our defence lawyers immediately sprang into action, determined to uncover the truth of the matter. They began their search for evidence by contacting the police and the prosecution, speaking to friends, family members, and co-workers, and analysing CCTV footage when the two were in public. Furthermore, our criminal defence solicitors worked with mobile phone experts to go through our client’s phone data and analyse any and all messages between the two.
Our criminal defence solicitors discovered that the charges were patently false. On the day she claimed he raped her, the two shared loving, intimate messages on WhatsApp and Snapchat. There were no threats to kill, and the harshest messages revolved around relationships with previous partners or hot-headed arguments between two young adults. Mobile phone evidence also revealed that Ms. K would consistently cause arguments, fuel his feelings of jealousy by insinuating that she was in contact with ex-partners, and claim that she was suicidal without him. The witness statements gathered all proved his good nature and his hard-working ethic, and all were surprised by the charges laid out against him.
After initial trials, our defence solicitors convinced the judge that the charges were patently false. Despite this, the judge and prosecution took the trial forward, but reduced the charge of ‘threats to kill’ to that of ‘malicious communications’. During the trial, our defence solicitors succinctly argued that our client was falsely and maliciously charged with these offences, pointing to the years of messages between the two, to witness statements, and to CCTV footage that objectively proved that the allegations were false. The jury recognised that the allegations were malicious in nature, and immediately acquitted our client, finally granting him his freedom.
Due to the seriousness of rape accusations, complainants do not have to provide any evidence – their word is taken at face value, and the defendant is prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. This means that false rape allegations can disrupt people’s lives for months, or years at a time. If you or someone you know is in a similar situation, please don’t hesitate to contact us now. We’re here to help defend your rights and protect your interests.
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