Former Arsenal player Partey to plead not guilty to 2 new rape charges
Al Jazeera
Ghana international Thomas Partey faced initial charges of rape just days after leaving Arsenal last summer.
Former Arsenal player Thomas Partey intends to plead not guilty to two new charges of rape, his lawyer told a London court on Friday.
The 32-year-old Ghana midfielder, who now plays for Spanish club Villarreal, is separately awaiting trial on five counts of rape related to two women and one count of sexual assault involving a third woman.
The new charges were brought after a different woman alleged Partey twice raped her on the same day in December 2020. According to a court hearing on Friday, the new allegations arose after the first set of charges were publicised.
Partey was not required to attend Friday’s preliminary session at Westminster Magistrates’ Court. His lawyer, Emma Fenn, indicated he intends to plead not guilty to both charges. The next court date for the case is April 10.
Partey pleaded not guilty to the first set of charges and faces trial in November at Southwark Crown Court. Those alleged offences were between 2021 and 2022, prosecutors have said.
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