Oldham Athletic star and his friends cleared of gang rape
All three men were cleared. - Credit: PA Archive/Press Association Ima
A footballer at the centre of a spot fixing probe was cleared of gang raping a woman in his flat.
Midfielder Cristian Montano, 22, was said to have forced himself on the woman, before his friends Andres Hurtado, 23, of Pemberton Gardens, Upper Holloway and Camilo Valencia, 22, of Woolridge Way, South Hackney also had sex with her.
A jury of seven men and five women unanimously found co-defendants Hurtado and Valencia not guilty.
After 10 hours deliberation at Snaresbrook Crown Court the jury could not reach a decision on the former Oldham Athletic star.
But today prosecutor Timothy Forster said the prosecution had dropped the case against Colombian-born Montano and there would not be a retrial.
You may also want to watch:
Montano was said to have attacked the woman after meeting her at the Liquid club in Romford on July 8.
They went back to his flat where the woman said she woke up with the player on top of her while Hurtado and Valencia watched.
Most Read
- 1 Man dies after reports of shooting in Dalston
- 2 'The pressure is intense': Hoxton vegan chef competes in Great British Menu
- 3 Election 2021: Hackney by-election results revealed
- 4 London elections 2021 live: Latest results as they come in
- 5 London Fields: Woman's cheekbone fractured in broad daylight attack
- 6 'Massive stabbing' in Old Street: Man attacked outside Moorfields Hospital
- 7 What can open in Hackney when lockdown rules ease on May 17?
- 8 Teenagers shot and stabbed in Hackney
- 9 'Arrested for being on my balcony', a young black man speaks out
- 10 £20,000 reward for information on Stoke Newington murder
After Montano finished, she claimed Hurtado pulled his trousers down and had sex with her before Valencia took his turn.
Hurtado and Montano both admitted having sex with the girl but claimed it was totally consensual.
Valencia denied having sex with her at all.
Montano claimed the girl had ‘encouraged’ him into bed and that he had stopped having sex with her because he felt guilty about cheating on his girlfriend.
The player was arrested after a sting by a Sunday newspaper appeared to catch him at the centre of a betting scam.
In a video obtained by the paper, he was seen talking about his apparent attempts to get booked on purpose in the first half of a match Oldham lost 2-0 at Wolves.
All three defendants denied rape.
