The French international, Benjamin Mendy, the defender of Manchester City, the English Premier League, was charged with a new rape charge, a judicial source said Wednesday, after the lifting of reporting restrictions.
A 27-year-old girl filed a new rape complaint against Mandi, who is accused of eight rape cases, one count of sexual assault and one count of attempted rape, related to seven women who filed complaints against him.
The 27-year-old City full-back, who won the World Cup with the “Rooster” in Russia, pleaded not guilty last month to the previous charges.
The media was prevented from reporting the new charge, but Judge Stephen Everett lifted the restriction during a hearing at Chester Crown Court in northwest England on Wednesday.
The 10 charges against Mendy relate to events that allegedly occurred between October 2018 and August 2021 at his home in Prestbury, Cheshire.
Mendy will appear before a jury on July 25 with his co-accused Louis Saha Matori (40 years), who also pleaded not guilty, denying eight counts of rape and four counts of sexually assaulting eight young women.
Mendy, the world champion with the “Rooster” team in 2018, was released in early January and placed under judicial supervision pending his trial.
Mendy joined City for 60 million euros in 2017, after he caught the eye with Marseille and starred with Monaco for one season, making him at that time the most expensive defender in history. He played 75 matches with the English champions in the past two seasons, but he suffered from a decline in his level and several injuries.
The full-back played 10 matches with the French national team, the last of which was in November 2019.