Police detective cleared of rape in Stratford hotel room - The Stratford Observer

Police detective cleared of rape in Stratford hotel room

Stratford Editorial 19th Mar, 2015 Updated: 28th Oct, 2016   0

A POLICE detective who insisted all of his sexual activity with a woman in a Stratford hotel room was with her willing participation has been cleared of raping her.

Dc Nicholas Doherty, of Barrow-in-Furness, had denied two charges of raping the woman, and one of attempted rape, and of a sexual assault

After deliberating for over three hours on the third day of his trial at Warwick Crown Court, the jury found the 42 year-old not guilty of all four charges by unanimous verdicts.

The jury had heard that as part of his job as a detective constable with Cumbria Police, Mr Doherty was involved in recovering the proceeds of crime from criminals.




In February 2012 he attended a conference on that topic in Stratford, and when he and colleagues went to a pub in the town one evening he met the woman, who was in her 30s.

They had both been drinking, and after leaving the pub they went a room at the hotel where Mr Doherty was staying for a ‘nightcap’ drink of tea for her and coffee for him.


The woman said her next memory was of waking up naked with Mr Doherty, who she believed was called Mike, lying naked on top of her, said prosecutor Simon Phillips.

Mr Doherty was not arrested until more than 18 months later when he was identified as ‘Mike’ after details were circulated to forces who had officers at the conference.

And giving evidence, he insisted the sexual activity in the room had been with her willing participation.

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