Man City’s Benjamin Mendy is to spend further time in prison after appearing in at Chester Magistrates’ Court throughout Friday.
The footballer has been remanded in custody for two weeks, charged with four counts of rape and one count of sexual assault.
The 27-year-old was charged with the offences on Thursday afternoon and held in custody, then turned up in a prison van ahead of Friday’s appearance in court.
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Lawyers for the French player applied for him to be released on bail, however magistrates have decided to keep him in custody at HMP Altcourse in Liverpool, ahead of a Crown Court appearance on the 10th of September.
Mendy appeared in the dock dressed in black jogging bottoms and a red hoodie, with the charges being read out and relayed to him by an interpreter who was in court.
He showed no emotion as he was taken from the court accompanied by two dock officers at the end of the hearing.
Details of the charges Benjamin Mendy faces were released ahead of his appearance at Chester Magistrates’ Court on Friday. They are as listed by The Telegraph:
– Charged with three counts of rape in October 2020 at his home address in Prestbury, Cheshire.
– Charged with the sexual assault of a woman, also at his home address in early January this year.
– Charged with the rape of a woman in August this year, also at his home address.
– Charged with breaking his bail conditions in August, according to the court listing, which said that after being released on the 26th of July this year he broke a condition by having more than four people present at his home address.
The charges relate to three different complainants with the hearing lasting for less than an hour with no pleas entered.
Debbie Byrne, prosecuting, said Mendy was released under investigation on the 11th of November last year after being arrested on suspicion of rape. In January, he was further arrested on suspicion of sexual assault, the court was told.
Byrne said one of Mendy’s bail conditions was that he should not have house parties. She said police were called to a party attended by up to 21 people at Mendy’s home in the Cheshire village of Mottram St Andrew this week. He was then arrested over a further allegation of rape and for allegedly breaching his bail conditions, the court heard.
Byrne said Mendy had shown an an unwillingness to comply with his bail conditions, and he should be remanded in custody to prevent him from carrying out further offences.
She said: “The defendant has shown total disregard and, the crown will say, an arrogance in ignoring the bail conditions and continuing to conduct his social life as he chooses.”
Earlier on Friday, Mendy arrived at Chester Magistrates’ Court in a GeoAmey vehicle.
The DAF van was given an escort by a Peugeot 308 police car before driving into the court building through an open red shutter door, which was then closed behind it.
Mendy plays as a left back and was born in a suburb of Paris and began his career in France with Le Havre before moving to Marseille and then Monaco.
He signed for Premier League club Manchester City in July 2017 on a five-year contract for a reported £52m fee – a world record for a defender.
He was also a member of France’s 2018 World Cup winning squad but only played for 40 minutes during the tournament.
Announcing his suspension from Manchester City a spokesman 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.”
Mendy was one of the first player to be at the center of Covid hitting football, when in March 2020, a member of his family took ill at his home.
In 2019, he was reprimanded by his manager, Pep Guardiola, after he was spotted in a nightclub just hours before he was due to attend a training session.
He has also suffered a number of injuries which have kept him out of the game for long periods.
In 2018, he was banned from driving for a year after racking up 24 points on his licence.
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