A rape accused was freed by a jury after he said he had only fondled the complainant and made plans to have sex with her the next day.

Troy Harris, 33, mechanic of Gayle, St Mary, was freed last Friday in the St Mary Circuit Court. He was accused of raping a 19-year-old woman.

The complainant testified that on May 14, 2007, Harris drove her to Lovers Lane, in Berry, St Mary, where he raped her. She made a report to her mother, who, two days later, reported the matter to the police.

$100,000 cheque

Cross-examined by defence lawyer Peter Champagnie, the complainant admitted taking a $100,000 cheque from a relative of the accused. She said the relative forced her to take the cheque so she lodged it to her account. She admitted that a stop order had been placed on the cheque.

Champagnie suggested to the complainant that she was extorting money from the accused and the cheque was part of a sting operation to show her up, but she denied this.

She admitted that it was two weeks after the incident that she went to to the doctor to be examined.

Champagnie suggested to her that it was after the stop order had been placed on the cheque that she went to the doctor.

Harris, in his defence, denied the charge, saying he had fondled her and made arrangements to have sexual intercourse with her the next day.

The jury retired for one and a half hours before returning the not -guilty verdict.

Justice Lennox Campbell presided at the trial.