Slowthai found not guilty of raping two women at 2021 house party
The rapper stood trial at Oxford crown court on Monday, December 16
WARNING: This article includes accounts of sexual violence which may be distressing for some readers. Resources for support are listed at the end of this article.
British rapper Slowthai, real name Tyron Frampton, has been cleared of raping two women at a 2021 house party.
Frampton, 29, stood trial at Oxford crown court on Monday, December 16, alongside his co-accused, Alex Blake-Walker, 27. Both men were found not guilty of three joint counts of rape.
During the 10-hour trial, the jury heard that Frampton had met a group of women before his show in Oxford in September 2021, who invited the rapper and his friends to a house party.
Frampton then attended the party after his gig at the Bullingdon, the court heard. Blake-Walker was alleged to have raped one woman, encouraged by Frampton, before Frampton was then alleged to have raped a second woman twice.
Both men denied all charges against them, claiming that both complainants consented to all sexual activity. Blake-Walker was found not guilty of another count of sexual assault.
Frampton’s lawyer, Patrick Gibbs, argued that his client would be cancelled “for the rest of time” no matter the trial’s outcome. “Even if he is acquitted, it will not leave him," he said.
Prosecutor Heather Stangoe asked the jury not to investigate the case individually, but decide a verdict based on the evidence presented. “This is not CSI, this is not an American drama – this is a case about real people and things that happened in real life,” she told the jury (per The Guardian).
After both men heard the verdict, Blake-Walker put his arm around Frampton in support, before Frampton broke down in tears. The judge said that the case “raised a lot of high feelings".
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Gemma Ross is Mixmag's Assistant Editor, follow her on Twitter