Man City star Benjamin Mendy, 27, is charged with seventh count of rape as he appears at court over string of sex offences.
Manchester City star Benjamin Mendy has been charged with a seventh count of rape from a new complainant.
The 27-year defender is now accused of a total of seven rapes and one sexual assault.
The charges now relate to five complainants over the age of 16 and are alleged to have taken place between October 2020 and August 2021.
Co-defendant Louis Saha Matturie, 40, is charged with six counts of rape and one of sexual assault.
The charges against him relate to four complainants over the age of 16 and are alleged to have taken place between March 2021 and August 2021.
Benjamin Mendy’s charges in full
Three counts of rape of one woman on October 11, 2020, alleged to have taken place at his home in Prestbury, Cheshire
Sexual assault by touching of another woman on January 2, 2021, alleged to have taken place at his home in Prestbury, Cheshire
One count of rape of another woman on July, 2021
One count of rape of another woman on July 24, 2021, alleged to have taken place in Macclesfield, Cheshire
Two counts of rape of one woman on August 23, 2021, alleged to have taken place in Macclesfield, Cheshire
Mendy and Matturie are due to stand trial on January 24, next year, but judge Patrick Thompson said that date looked ‘unrealistic’.
The French international has been held in custody at HMP Altcourse, in Liverpool, since being charged with four counts of rape and one sexual assault on August 26.
All offences are alleged to have taken place at his home in Cheshire.
He is accused of raping a woman three times in October last year.
He allegedly raped a second woman while he was on police bail in August.
The footballer is also accused of a sexual assault in early January 2021.
Mendy, of Prestbury, was charged last month with two further counts of rape.
The offences allegedly took place in Macclesfield, Cheshire, on July 24 and August 23, this year.
At a previous hearing, his lawyer Christopher Stables said that he strenuously denied the allegations.
Premier League champions City spent a reported £49.2million signing Mendy from French side Monaco in 2017.
He earns £90,000 a week and lives in a £5million mansion in Prestbury, an upmarket village near Manchester popular with fellow players.
He was part of France’s World Cup winning squad in 2018, but did not play in the final. He has made 75 appearances for Man City since signing from Monaco in 2017.
Mendy played in Man City’s first two games this season against Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur but was on the bench for their third game against Norwich City.
The following game was against Arsenal, by which time he had been charged.
In September last year City boss Pep Guardiola revealed Mendy would be out of the game for at least a month due to an injury.
City later suspended the left-back after he was charged.
In a statement, the club said: ‘Manchester City can confirm that following his being charged by police today, Benjamin Mendy has been suspended pending an investigation.
‘The matter is subject to a legal process and the club is therefore unable to make further comment until that process is complete.’
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