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Former Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey appears in court charged with five counts of rape

Former Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey appears in court charged with five counts of rape

The Ghanaian midfielder, 32, has been charged with five counts of rape against two women, as well as a charge of sexual assault against a third woman.
The alleged offences took place between 2021 and 2022, when he was an Arsenal player.
Partey stood with his arms behind his back in the dock at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Tuesday, wearing a black zip-neck jumper.
The footballer, who gave his address as Potters Bar, showed no reaction as the charges were read out and was not asked to enter any pleas.
The alleged offences include incidents of anal rape, the court heard.
His bail conditions include that he cannot contact any of the three women and must notify police of any permanent changes of address or international travel.
It comes amid reports that Partey is set to join Spanish club Villarreal.
As bail conditions were discussed in court, Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring said: 'I understand he's no longer employed in this country and playing in Spain now.'
Partey is due to appear at the Old Bailey on September 2.
He was charged four days after leaving Arsenal when his contract expired at the end of June
A spokeswoman for Arsenal Supporters Against Sexual Violence said they were 'profoundly disappointed' in the north London club for their handling of the matter.
Speaking outside court, Honor Barbersaid: 'We never wanted to be in a situation where the club that we love and the club that has values that we believe in was playing, week-in week-out, a player who is now facing court appearances on six counts of sexual violence.
'We protested outside almost every home game last season because we wanted to disrupt the wall of silence that the club has put up around this issue, and we did that because we want to support our club and feel happy and comfortable supporting our club.'
Members of the group held a banner which read 'Arsenal said: 'We do the right thing' then did nothing'.
Barber said the group wanted Arsenal to publish their sexual violence policies, 'suspend anyone under investigation for sexual offences' and 'properly support the survivors'.
London's Metropolitan Police said it first received reports of an allegation of rape in February 2022.
Partey's lawyer Jenny Wiltshire previously said he 'denies all the charges against him', adding he welcomed 'the opportunity to finally clear his name'.
He joined Arsenal from Atletico Madrid in 2020 in a transfer worth around £45m.
The defensive midfielder signed for the Spanish club in 2012 and made 188 appearances, as well as going out on loan to Mallorca and Leganes.
He played 35 games for the north London club in the Premier League last season, scoring four goals.
Partey has also made more than 50 appearances for Ghana including at the World Cup and the Africa Cup of Nations.
An Arsenal spokesperson previously said: 'The player's contract ended on June 30. Due to ongoing legal proceedings, the club is unable to comment on the case.'
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