Benjamin Mendy was arrested and charged with eight counts of sexual assault a long time ago now and his trial kicked off last week and it looks like we’re going to hear all the gory details of his crimes over the next few weeks.
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Prosecutor Thomas Cray delivered his opening arguments today saying that Mendy was aided in his assaults by 40 year old Louis Saha Matturie, who was described by Cray as his fixer who would target women to take back to Mendy’s mansion in the rural countryside. Once there, their mobile phones would be confiscated an they would be powerless to prevent Mendy from assaulting them.
Here’s what Cray had to say:
Our case is that the defendants’ pursuit of these 13 women turned them into predators, who were prepared to commit serious sexual offences.
These women were disposable, things to be used for sex, then thrown to one side.
That was the effect of deliberate, planned choices the defendants made, and the desires they let loose many times.
The acts that the defendants did together show callous indifference to the women they went after.
In their minds, and this could not be clearer, the stream of women they brought to their homes existed purely to be pursued for sex.
Vulnerable, scared, isolated – these are words you’ll hear from lots of the witnesses.
Ask yourselves, as you get under the skin of what was happening, who had the power and control in the situations these women experienced and you will hear about?
The prosecution case is simple – it has little to do with football.
Instead, we say, it is another chapter in a very old story – men who rape and sexually assault women because they think they are powerful, and because they think they can get away with it.
Mendy was playing for Man City. This was a period of success, where he enjoyed a privileged and moneyed lifestyle.
The doors of restaurants and nightclubs were open to him, people wanted to be with him. Saha was part of that world, contacting girls, ringing girls.
In this day and age, no one can doubt, can they, that “no means no”. That’s no longer some sort of grey area, or some sort of open door for a man to push through regardless.
Everyone should have that basic choice that basic dignity, the right to say “no” to sex.
And you don’t lose that right because you’ve been to a bar or dressed for a nightclub or gone to a footballer’s house.
We say these defendants weren’t in some happy state of sexual ignorance about how this all works, they knew very well what they were doing.
They turned the pursuit of women for sex into a game and if women got hurt or distressed, too bad.
Yeah that really doesn’t look too good for Mendy and Matturie does it? They sound like absolutely terrible and disgusting people and the fact that they’ve both been charged with eight rapes really makes me think that it’s going to be highly unlikely that they get away with this. Dread to think about what other details are going to be uncovered during the trial.
For more of the same, check out these text messages that Thomas Partey allegedly sent the woman that he’s accused of raping. What is it with these scumbag Premier League players these days.
