Oliver Mears, 19, spent more than two years on bail before his case was thrown out after the CPS reviewed the evidence
The case against an Oxford student accused of rape has been dropped days before he was due to stand trial.
Oliver Mears, 19, spent more than two years on bail before the case was abandoned.
Yesterday the Crown Prosecution Service asked the judge to record a not guilty verdict after a review of evidence by a ‘new set of eyes’.
Mr Mears’s lawyers are believed to have complained that evidence that would prove the chemistry student’s innocence had not yet been disclosed.
The student, who took time out from St Hugh’s College because of stress, was accused of raping and indecently assaulting a woman in July 2015 – weeks after his 17th birthday.
Mr Mears, from Horley, Surrey, appeared at Guildford crown court in August last year where he enter pleas of not guilty.
His trial was scheduled to start on Monday, but the CPS reportedly contacted his lawyers on Wednesday to say they would not be putting forward any evidence.
The prosecutors are believed to have appeared before Judge Jonathan Black yesterday morning to explain why Mr Mears was to be found not guilty, The Times reported.
It comes as Britain’s top prosecutor claimed no innocent people are in jail as a result of failures to disclose crucial evidence. Alison Saunders, head of the Crown Prosecution Service, insisted the justice system was working properly, despite a string of rape trials collapsing.
But critics condemned her as ‘complacent’ after it emerged that police and prosecutors have failed to hand over texts and photos to defence lawyers in trials. The CPS has denied any failings.
Yesterday Mrs Saunders, the Director of Public Prosecutions, met senior police officers, senior judges and barristers to discuss concerns that vital material was not being presented.
The student, who took time out from St Hugh’s College (pictured) because of stress, was accused of raping and indecently assaulting a woman in July 2015
Asked on Radio 4’s Today programme if it was possible innocent people were in prison because of disclosure failures, she replied: ‘I don’t think so.
‘Because what these cases show is that when we take a case through to trial there are various safeguards in place, not least of which is the defence indicating what their defence is going to be.
‘Disclosure is a vital matter which we take very seriously, but it is clear that there are systemic issues across the entire criminal justice system. The problem we have found recently is around the ever-increasing use of social media, all the digital material we obtain.’
Mr Mears (pictured), from Horley, Surrey, appeared at Guildford crown court in August last year where he enter pleas of not guilty
Last month the trial of 22-year-old criminology student Liam Allan, who was charged with six counts of rape, was halted after it emerged his accuser had sent hundreds of messages to friends that would have cleared him immediately.
And the rape trial of Samson Makele, 28, collapsed on Monday after his defence team unearthed key images from his mobile phone, missed by police and the CPS, which showed him and his alleged victim apparently cuddling in bed.
But yesterday Mrs Saunders suggested photos and social media accounts did not need to be fully checked in rape cases, even though such evidence was crucial in clearing Mr Allan and other defendants.
She said police were obliged to pursue ‘all reasonable lines of inquiry’ but added: ‘That doesn’t mean going into every single avenue of your life.’
Tory MP Anna Soubry wrote on Twitter: ‘Appalled at the ill-informed comments of DPP Alison Saunders. Have been longstanding problems with disclosure.’
Criminal barrister Nick Rhodes QC, accused Mrs Saunders of complacency.
A CPS spokesman said prosecutors were not satisfied there was a realistic prospect of conviction. A police spokesman said the investigation ended ‘for a number of reasons’.