After a 4-day trial at Canterbury Crown Court, James secured acquittals on all three counts on the indictment: two counts of rape and one count of sexual assault.

AS was alleged to have taken advantage of a pregnant woman sleeping rough in Canterbury by inviting her back to his home and raping her multiple times in the property. In support of the Crown’s case was forensic evidence that the defendant’s DNA in saliva was present on the breasts of the complainant, which was consistent with her account. For his part, the defendant denied that there had been any sexual contact between the pair.

The jury returned unanimous not guilty verdicts on all counts.

James was instructed by Chris Wray of Bond Joseph Solicitors.