“Not guilty”, repeated the 27-year-old footballer several times in court in Chester (north-west of England), denying the seven rapes, the attempted rape and the sexual assault of which he is accused by six women.
These nine counts relate to events that allegedly took place between October 2018 and August 2021 at his home in Prestbury, Cheshire.
After spending several months in pre-trial detention, the 2018 world champion was released in early January and placed under judicial supervision, pending his trial which is due to open on July 25.
The case started at the end of August 2021 when the Manchester City club announced the suspension of the player, under contract until June 2023, without further explanation.
English justice then quickly announced that the player had been placed in pre-trial detention after being accused of four rapes and a sexual assault, by three women including a minor.
Other charges were then added.
Trained in Le Havre, revealed in Marseille and spent a season with Monaco, Benjamin Mendy became the most expensive defender in history in 2017 when the Citizens paid 52 million pounds (about 61.4 million euros at the current price). ) to secure his services.
When he arrived at City, he was considered one of the great French and world hopes for the left-back position.
But the 27-year-old's career has been hampered for four years by injuries.
His life off the field has not always been exemplary either, the ruthless English tabloids reveling in the fall of 2020 in the seizure of his Lamborghini, worth more than 500,000 euros, which he drove without a license nor insurance.
In this case, he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to a fine of just over 1,000 euros.
© 2022 AFP