English police on Thursday announced the filing of complaints against Manchester United star Mason Greenwood, who was accused of rape, domestic violence and coercion, which he allegedly exercised over his ex-girlfriend.
“Criminal proceedings against a 21-year-old man in connection with an investigation opened in January 2022 have, today (Thursday 2 February 2023), been discontinued by the CPS.” Chief Superintendent Michaela Kerr, GMP’s Head of Public Protection, said.
Meanwhile Greenwood’s charges of attempted rape, assault, and coercive control have all been dropped, according to the Crown Prosecution Service.
A spokesperson for the CPS said that the charges were dropped due to the withdrawal of a key witness and new evidence that does not show a realistic prospect of guilt.
“We have a duty to keep cases under continuous review.” a CPS spokesperson said.
“In this case a combination of the withdrawal of key witnesses and new material that came to light meant there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction.
“In these circumstances, we are under a duty to stop the case. We have explained our decision to all parties.
“We would always encourage any potential victims to come forward and report to police and we will prosecute wherever our legal test is met.” he added.
Greenwood was arrested in January 2022 after being accused by a woman of rape and assault, with images and videos being released on social media, with the player being released in February on bail, in which one of the conditions was offside to contact the alleged victim.
The winger was arrested again on Oct 15 for allegedly violating the terms of his bail, and his trial was set for November 2023.
Greenwood was banned by Manchester United, and saw sponsors such as Nike terminate contracts, and video game giant EA Sports removing him from its FIFA2022 teams.
