Man City’s Benjamin Mendy granted bail and will leave ‘UK’s grimmest prison’

Don’t wait around for updates – sign up for our daily football email newsletter today!

Manchester City footballer Benjamin Mendy has been granted bail and will now leave top-security prison Strangeways.

Mendy, who has been charged with seven counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, had been remanded in custody since October 1 last year.

The 27-year-old was initially being held at Liverpool's Category B prison HMP Altcourse having been arrested in August.

However, the France international was secretly switched to a different jail, dubbed the 'UK's grimmest', before Christmas due to fears for his safety.

But now Chester Crown Court have ruled that he can leave on bail – but on 'stringent' conditions.

Mendy has been told he must surrender his passport, live at his home address, and make no contact with complainants.

Mendy and co-defendant Louis Saha Matturie, 40, of Eccles, Greater Manchester, are next due to face a plea and trial preparation hearing on January 24.

Matturie is accused of six counts of rape and one of sexual assault.

Their actual trial is set to start on either June 27 or August 1.

Mendy was charged with a fresh count of rape last month, at which time the trial date was pushed back from its initial January date to later in 2022.

The charge relates to a new complainant and is alleged to have taken place in July 2021.

Mendy is now accused of eight offences against five different women, including seven counts of rape relating to four women.

The earlier charges are three counts of rape, alleged to have happened on October 11 2020; sexual assault on January 2 2021; one count of rape on July 24 2021 and two counts of rape on August 23 2021.

  • Manchester City FC
  • Premier League
  • Benjamin Mendy

Source: Read Full Article